Listen Up! - 2009/05

by
Ward
Van Duzer
Caring for one of
a modeler’s most
important senses
Hand signals at the field
are familiar, because
engines can be loud.
May 2009 65
WHAT? What did you say? I didn’t hear
you.
Does the preceding seem familiar? It
does to me. Many of us in this hobby/sport
are aging and have been exposed to
damaging noises throughout our lives,
including Combat, Team Race, Pylon
Racing, Dynajet Speed, etc.
I was a jet-aircraft mechanic in the late
1950s. It was cool! I got to work on F-86
Sabres and F-84F Thunderstreaks. The bad
news is that there was no ear protection, and
I’ve had hearing issues since then.
I’m certainly not deaf, but I do need the
volume turned up. (And I talk too loud!)
When my wife started wearing earplugs
while we were watching TV, I figured it
might be time to do something.
But what do you do, where do you go,
what’s good, and what’s not? You might
have heard that getting help for hearing loss
is an expensive prospect. Will your
insurance kick in? Mine does.
Isn’t that Dick over there, wearing a tiny
hearing aid behind his ear? Ask your friends.
You probably haven’t noticed some of them
wearing the new little digital devices. Your
pals can help you get started.
I talked to several buddies who told me
that they were never happier than when they
made the move to hearing aids. They no
longer have to tune out of conversations or
pretend they are listening at the field
because they are only getting half of what’s
being said. They no longer have to whisper
to their spouses, “What did she just say?”
Why do we resist this so much?
I finally made a move when I saw a local
newspaper’s ad for a hotshot super “Hearing
Aid Expert” who was going to be at the
hearing aid store on Saturday and to call for
an appointment. I did. He told me that I had
a fungus in my ears and that he wouldn’t
even test my hearing until I got it cleared
up.
I want to point out that the
advertisement was for an “expert”—not
an “audiologist.” What’s the difference?
A hearing aid expert/specialist is licensed
in some states to perform hearing tests and
prescribe hearing instruments. His or her
training generally includes continuing
education courses and seminars in hearing
sciences.
Until 2006, becoming an audiologist
required six years of college-level education
with a master’s degree, one year of externship,
and passing a national exam. Now the
minimum is seven years of college-level
education, a doctorate degree, one year of an
externship, and the national exam, for a total
of eight years.
I didn’t realize that there was a difference,
but I know whom I want working on my
problem!
In my ignorance, I went to the “expert”
ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) doctor for a look.
She told me I had no fungus—just some loose,
dead skin!
“But my audiologist is in my office today,
and she’ll test you [no charge] if you want to
get it done,” the ENT doctor told me.
“Why not?” I thought. “Let’s get on with
it.”
Painless? For testing, you are placed in a
soundproof booth and given a pair of
earphones. This is where the audiologist plays
various tones at different volumes, to
determine which pitch ranges your ears are
deficient in hearing. I was fine in the lower
ranges, but my hearing fell off drastically in
the higher pitches (such as female voices).
You are also read a series of words to
determine how well you can differentiate
sounds including “s”s, “f”s, and “th”s.
All of this is done, because the new digital
hearing aids can be programmed to your
specific problem(s). Those old, clunky hearing
aids were mostly just amplifiers stuffed in
your ears.
And although some of the newer devices
are pricier than the old ones, they are way
more versatile. They can be reprogrammed if
your situation changes or if they are not quite
right for you.
Next I went to the ENT doctor’s
audiologist’s office (the next hearing aid
store), who had a hearing aid to show me.
There was only one brand, and of course it
was top of the line: $4,000 a pair. And yes, I
needed a pair.
She plugged the device into her laptop and
programmed it for my issues. Then she placed
the unit behind my right ear and adjusted it.
Wow, what a difference!
Ward: Why didn’t I do this ages ago? Let’s try
the left ear.
05sig3.QXD 3/25/09 8:59 AM Page 65
Photos by the author and the MA staff
Above: A healthy roaring four-stroke
engine can be a beautiful sound—to the
modeler who is tinkering with the
powerhouse. Consider your environment;
don’t wake the neighbors!
Right: Trapped inside a small bubble, fullscale
pilots protect their ears with
headsets. Even the expensive ones are
worth every penny.
Left: Is a hearing aid in your future? If you
think so, shop around and consider other
solutions. There are simpler approaches.
Below: Engine noise varies with type and
application. Modern CL Aerobatics
models are much quieter than traditional
Old-Timer aircraft that have no mufflers.
Novice helicopter pilots should keep their machines at safe distances
from themselves and others. Doing so makes it easier to hear alerts
from other modelers at the site.
Routine field activity can be deafening. Low-idle starts are
considered safe for the ears. If you’re hanging around several running
engines, consider wearing ear protection.
66 MODEL AVIATION
05sig3.QXD 3/25/09 9:00 AM Page 66
Audiologist: I only have one sample.
Ward: Huh? Okay, but how about the
number-two machine in the manufacturer’s
lineup?
Each manufacturer typically produces
many models in three categories, according
to features and pricing: Economy, Middleof-
the-Road, and Super-Duper. Do I really
need the most expensive one?
Audiologist: I can order one of those for
you next week. Payment in advance will be
$3,000.
Ward: But I just want to try it here.
Audiologist: You have 30 days to return it.
Ward: Thank you, have a nice day.
I’m not paying cash for a Chevy after
test-driving a Cadillac.
My third attempt to obtain a solution to
my hearing problem was when an
audiologist from a large local shop attended
a civic club meeting to explain his business
and his products. He did a great job of
explaining what to expect from each price
range of hearing instruments and the
variations among brands.
He said that some brands do a better job
with different problems than others. Based
on your personal issues and your lifestyle,
he selects the best device for each person.
The higher-priced units are normally better
at discerning variations in sounds and have
the ability to program them in or out. If you
are the type who only sits at home and
works on your computer, the economy unit
would most likely be fine.
However, if you are outdoors, attending
meetings, or going to restaurants where
there is a lot of background noise, you’d be
better off with the higher-priced spread.
I took my written test results from the
second store to the third hearing aid store.
As I was sitting at the audiologist’s desk, I
noticed 10-15 machines sitting on it. That
seemed like a good thing.
After a short interview, the doctor
recommended a machine that would best
suit my situation and showed me a sample.
Ward: Okay, let’s try it.
Audiologist: Oh, these are only empty
samples for you to look at. We can order
one [I’d have to prepay] and have it in by
next week.
Ward: Have a nice day.
If you are getting the feeling that I
wasn’t real happy with the hearing aid store
treatment I had been getting, you’re right.
Somehow I thought I was going to be
treated as a patient—not as a customer.
And I felt like I was being treated as a
dumb customer. Don’t most stores you
frequent maintain an inventory of products?
I know that state law says I have 30
days to return the product if I don’t like it,
but have you ever tried to get an
overpayment from a doctor’s office?
By this time, I was so frustrated that I
headed for the Internet. There I found the
HearingPlanet Web site’s digital hearing
aid buyer’s guide. It may sound hokey, but
it contains everything you ever wanted to
know about hearing and a lot of stuff you
probably never considered.
Look around on this site, and you’ll
become educated. If you decide that the
people who run HearingPlanet know what
they are doing, fill out the online
application. Yes, I was skeptical at first.
From there, you will be assigned a
personal assistant to guide you through this
hearing aid-buying process the right way.
That person will follow up on your
experience and the site’s recommended
doctors to make sure that you are satisfied.
Did I mention that this service is free?
HearingPlanet’s services feature:
1) Offices that work with multiple
manufacturers.
2) Fully accredited audiologists with
great testimonials from many existing
patients.
3) Audiologists—not commissioned
salespeople.
The audiologists earn the same amount
of money from each sale, whether it is a
high-end unit or a lower-priced hearing aid.
Therefore, they can choose what is most
practical and appropriate for each patient.
And HearingPlanet hearing aids are
considerably less expensive than those at
comparable hearing aid stores, because of
the site’s bulk purchasing power.
Soon after you sign up, you’ll receive a
phone call from your HearingPlanet
“helper.” After a short interview, he or she
will give you a list of recommended
audiologists in your area.
The person I chose had her doctorate in
audiology. She completely retested me and
gave me a video otoscope exam (which I’ll
come back to). My doctor had dozens of
working machines that she could program
for me, and I was able to listen to the
results.
My doctor tested me with my wife’s
voice on specific words, sounds, and
situations. I underwent amazing, real-life
testing, and I was there well more than an
hour. There was no wham-bam, gimme
your money from this doctor.
It did look like I was heading for the
high-priced spread because of my active
lifestyle, but do you remember that
otoscopic test I mentioned? It is a video
exam of the inside of your ears and how
they react to various sounds. You can
watch what’s going on in your ears on a TV
screen.
The doctor determined that I had
considerable earwax buildup on my
eardrums. This prevents the drums from
vibrating as they should and, therefore,
transmitting the sounds to your brain. Holy
smokes!
My doctor gave me the name of an
over-the-counter product—the Debrox
Earwax Removal kit—to use for a week to
clean my ears, and then I was to return for
another exam. The product is available at
most popular drug stores.
As it turns out, men are more prone to
wax buildup as they age. For some reason,
the amount of hair on our heads decreases
and the amount of hair in our ears
increases, trapping the moist wax. That is
why my doctor suggests that men who are
60 and older have their ears checked every
six months, to be proactive.
I have been subjected to no pressure to
buy a hearing aid. Oh, and no more Q-tips
allowed! The little pads push the wax
deeper into the ear, potentially causing this
problem.
Hearing Better? Amazing! By the end of
that week, my TV volume had gone from
53 to 27. My wife doesn’t yell at me
anymore; she hasn’t taken her earplugs out
of the drawer since I used the ear-cleaning
kit. And now I can hear the instructions
from my caller at the field.
Yes, I still have hearing issues, but you
can see how this rare but simple problem
confounded all the other issues. None of
the other hearing aid experts or audiologists
even tested me for this possibility. I’ll
probably go for the hearing instruments
when needed, but for now I’m enjoying my
new ears. MA
Ward Van Duzer
[email protected]
Sources:
Ward Van Duzer
11114 Bullrush Terr.
Bradenton FL 34202
(941) 907-4188
HearingPlanet
(800) 432-7669
www.hearingplanet.com