Slowly, but surely, we’ve become a Phonak family. The kids all started out with other brands of hearing aids and over time, they’ve been outfitted with Phonak Naidas. So when it came time for me to say goodbye to two broken hearing aids, I went for the Phonaks as well. You can read about my experience here:
Today’s Hearing Aids are Mini-Cadillacs
I’m proud to say that Phonak is one of my sponsors for my barefoot water skiing journey this summer. My journey with Phonak began with Dawn Ruley, who was my kids’ audiologist for several years. Dawn works at Phonak as a Pediatric and Schools Specialist. And because it’s such a small world, Dawn’s sister Megan Pullos, was Lauren’s preschool teacher. She was there for Lauren when she lost her hearing.
Dawn connected me with Mike Orschlen and Mike provided me a glimpse inside the company that provides such a variety of hearing aids. Mike is a 30-year veteran of the health care industry and he came to Phonak nearly four years ago. “I’ve worked in the medical equipment industry a long time, but I never really thought about hearing aids,” said Mike. “Hearing loss is a hidden thing–most don’t think about it nor do they treat their hearing loss.”
Mike speaks from personal experience. He didn’t discover his own hearing loss until two years ago, when he turned his head in bed one morning and discovered he couldn’t hear sounds out of one ear. “I never thought I had a hearing loss before that,” said Mike. “It’s the same for many other people–hearing loss is a bigger problem than most are aware of.” Mike wears a in-the-canal hearing aid, but his process as a patient was an eye-opener for him. He wanted to see what it was like for others to obtain a hearing aid. After waiting a few weeks, he was told that he didn’t need a hearing aid. “The doctor said that I didn’t need a hearing aid, but I know it helps because I wear mine. It allows me to hear the high frequencies that I’m missing.”
Phonak is unique in that in provides “Sound Recover,” a frequency transposition that takes the high sounds and converts them to lower frequency sounds that can be heard. No other hearing aid manufacturer offers this. “We are helping people to hear more, hear better and hear more clearly,” said Mike. “The Zoom feature creates a beam of sound directly in front of the person and suppresses background sounds, allowing people to hear in difficult environments. I love it– and I’m excited that we can help people hear better.
“That’s what motivates me about Phonak,” Mike continues. “The people who work here are driven by something more important than just answering phones–we make a difference in people’s lives. Everyone’s hearing loss is different, we tailor our products to the customer. If we help them, we can make a difference– and that feels good.”
And thank you, Phonak, for your sponsorship and for making a difference in my life and my kid’s life. I really do like that mute feature– for the times when the house is filled with rowdy teenagers.