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That isn't how it works at all. It is far more than an audiologist "fiddling with a GUI". The audiologist first does a hearing test, which is gives an audiogram

That isn't how it works at all. It is far more than an audiologist "fiddling with a GUI". The audiologist first does a hearing test, which is gives an audiogram which is a gain versus frequency plot that takes into account equal loudness curves. This is how they know to recommend hearing aids in the first place. This is the initial basis for tuning. Final tuning lets them adjust for things like ear canal size. If patents tuned it themselves, they would have too little gain at high frequencies since they may not have heard these frequencies in years and think they sound unnatural. It takes a while to become "used" to hearing aids because patients haven't heard the usual sounds of life like paper rustling in years.

solatic 9y ago
That's why the real question is whether audiologists can be automated away. Is it really so hard to imagine an at-home, self-administered hearing test? Put on a harness, hook it up to your smartphone, answer questions whether the tones are too loud or too quiet by tapping on the screen. Answer speech-comprehension questions by tapping out the word you hear. The app can then program, based on the test results, your hearing aids, sold to you by the same manufacturer of the app and the harness. People who think that hearing aids can be replaced by a $200 in-ear amplifier don't understand the domain they're talking about, but there's still much that could be disrupted within this space.
- planteen 9y ago
  That's an interesting idea. You are missing the part where an audiologist inspects your ear to see if there is a ton of earwax, infection, or other foreign body. There is also more test equipment than that often goes with a hearing test. I know some audiogram and reflex results can be indicative of things like a brain tumor which will result in an immediate referral to a ENT. And there's the whole counseling aspect of telling someone they (or their child) has a hearing loss.
  - solatic 9y ago
    Checking if an ear is affected by earwax / infection / foreign body can be carried out by a nurse, who doesn't need nearly as much education. This is besides the fact that audiologists don't typically deal with earwax / infections / foreign bodies anyway, and typically refer to an ENT anyway. Even after regulation which only permits the sale of the physical equipment which would pair with your smartphone after a prescription from an ENT who sees no sign of other problems, it would still drastically reduce costs for the end consumer, who would never need to set foot in an audiology office. And pediatric hearing loss is a fraction of all hearing loss patients... don't make the perfect the enemy of the good ;)
    - planteen 9y ago
      So it sounds like you are proposing a way of doing audiograms at home. I don't think this is the most significant cost of hearing aids. What is the average cost of an audiogram, maybe $100? You can already buy hearing aids online if you submit an audiogram. If you still need to visit an ENT office anyway, many larger ENT clinics (especially at hospitals) have audiologists in the clinic already.

solatic 9y ago

That's why the real question is whether audiologists can be automated away. Is it really so hard to imagine an at-home, self-administered hearing test? Put on a harness, hook it up to your smartphone, answer questions whether the tones are too loud or too quiet by tapping on the screen. Answer speech-comprehension questions by tapping out the word you hear. The app can then program, based on the test results, your hearing aids, sold to you by the same manufacturer of the app and the harness. People who think that hearing aids can be replaced by a $200 in-ear amplifier don't understand the domain they're talking about, but there's still much that could be disrupted within this space.

planteen 9y ago
That's an interesting idea. You are missing the part where an audiologist inspects your ear to see if there is a ton of earwax, infection, or other foreign body. There is also more test equipment than that often goes with a hearing test. I know some audiogram and reflex results can be indicative of things like a brain tumor which will result in an immediate referral to a ENT. And there's the whole counseling aspect of telling someone they (or their child) has a hearing loss.
- solatic 9y ago
  Checking if an ear is affected by earwax / infection / foreign body can be carried out by a nurse, who doesn't need nearly as much education. This is besides the fact that audiologists don't typically deal with earwax / infections / foreign bodies anyway, and typically refer to an ENT anyway. Even after regulation which only permits the sale of the physical equipment which would pair with your smartphone after a prescription from an ENT who sees no sign of other problems, it would still drastically reduce costs for the end consumer, who would never need to set foot in an audiology office. And pediatric hearing loss is a fraction of all hearing loss patients... don't make the perfect the enemy of the good ;)
  - planteen 9y ago
    So it sounds like you are proposing a way of doing audiograms at home. I don't think this is the most significant cost of hearing aids. What is the average cost of an audiogram, maybe $100? You can already buy hearing aids online if you submit an audiogram. If you still need to visit an ENT office anyway, many larger ENT clinics (especially at hospitals) have audiologists in the clinic already.