About us
Our adult hearing service provide assessments for adults aged 55 and over following a referral from your GP. We also carry out assessment for adults under the age of 55 following a referral from ear, nose and throat (ENT) service. Our team are also experienced in supporting patients with additional needs.
Getting ready for your appointment
Wax check
It is important that your ears are clear of wax when you come for your appointment. Wax may:
- prevent us from performing your hearing assessment
- prevent us from fitting a hearing aid
- cause whistling if we fit a hearing aid
If you are prone to wax build up, please visit your GP or practice nurse to check your ears for wax, before you attend your appointment.
What to bring
Please bring your hearing aids, ear moulds and any documentation you may have from previous appointments. If you wear glasses please bring these with you to your appointment.
We would encourage you to bring a family member or friend with you to your appointment. There may be some detailed information that you would like to discuss with someone after the appointment. It will provide an opportunity for your support person to find out more about the implications of your hearing.
What happens at your appointment
Your appointment may last up to an hour. We will take a short medical history and discuss your hearing difficulties.
Our audiologist will examine your ears and carry out a hearing test. The test is a range of sounds of differing volumes and tones played through headphones, and you press a button whenever you hear them.
We will explain the results of the test to you during your appointment and discuss your options. We will offer you hearing aids if appropriate.
We may need to take impressions of your ears to make earmoulds. A full explanation of the procedure will be given to you by the audiologist at your appointment.
Hearing aid fitting
Hearing aid fittings will last for approximately one hour and will involve some measurements to custom fit and fine tune your hearing aids. You will then receive all the instructions needed to look after your hearing aids and we will make sure you are happy putting them in. Please see the hearing aid instruction booklets at the bottom of this page.
At the end of your fitting a follow-up appointment can be booked, should you feel you need it. Your support with us is ongoing and you can book an appointment any time you are having difficulties or need a repair.
Where we are
We are located on the ground floor in the east wing of Worthing Hospital. We also run some outreach clinics at Southlands Hospital.
