Heartfelt Hearing Care That's Here For You - Business Mirror

Wednesday, Aug 31, 2022 at 5:00 PM

According to a 2011 study, almost 1 in 6 people in the Philippines experience hearing problems. Globally, around 2.5 billion people are predicted to have some hearing loss by 2050. While the statistics may seem daunting, all is not lost. Early detection and intervention are key to preventing and managing hearing loss. And it all starts with having the right partner in hearing care.

Rooted in the promise of providing heartfelt hearing care, Manila Hearing Aid (MHA) aims to help more hearing-impaired Filipinos find their way to hear life’s special moments.

Premier hearing care from the heart

Established in 1976, MHA was founded by ear, nose, and throat doctor Dr. Jose Abaño Jr. while searching for treatment solutions for his father, who suffered hearing loss. Fresh from his medical residency practice in New York, Dr. Abaño saw the lack of modern facilities to evaluate and provide solutions for hearing care in the Philippines.

Driven to help restore his father’s hearing and the medical experience abroad, Dr. Abaño partnered with global hearing care experts to make his dream a reality. Through his pioneering work in Diagnostic Audiology, Dr. Abaño became the Father of Hearing Care in the Philippines.

Today, MHA remains steadfast in its mission to provide the most comprehensive hearing care services and solutions with a total of 15 branches. Through its partnership with leading hearing care brands worldwide, such as Phonak and Oticon, MHA can cater to patients with the best possible experience.

Signs of hearing loss and how MHA can help

As people get older, they experience changes in their hearing. However, this doesn’t happen overnight. Here are examples of early signs of hearing loss that you might be experiencing:

• Ringing in the ears
• Inability to hear high-pitched sounds
• Some speeches and sounds appear muffled
• Trouble hearing consonants in words
• Withdrawing from social situationsI
• Needing to turn up the volume in gadgets and electronic devices

Worried about having these symptoms? Try getting a hearing test to evaluate and identify any signs of early hearing loss. MHA clinics are equipped with state-of-the-art hearing diagnostics and solutions for all stages of life, from newborns to adults. There is a pediatric-focused auditory brainstem response test to help determine the cause of hearing loss for babies. A pure-tone audiometry test can help identify and diagnose the degree and type of hearing loss.

Patients get tested through in-clinic face-to-face hearing screening and consultation. Choose from MHA’s 15 clinics nationwide and schedule an in-clinic consultation. Patients who are based in areas far from any MHA clinic can opt for the hearing screening test through the MHA website followed by a virtual consultation with a hearing care specialist.

Proper hearing care starts with prevention. MHA provides custom earplugs to help protect a person’s hearing from exposure to high levels of noise. Love swimming and diving? MHA’s swim plugs are customizable to aid swimmers and prevent bacteria and water from going inside the ear

Another factor that can contribute to hearing loss is occupational noise. MHA also offers corporate and industrial hearing tests for employees who are inevitably exposed to damaging noises in the workplaces such as factories, manufacturing, and the marine sector.

Reaching more Filipinos through franchise business

To help more hearing-impaired Filipinos hear life’s special moments, MHA formally opened its franchise business in April this year. The franchise locations will focus on these cities that have a significant prevalence percentage of hearing loss, according to the Philippine Statistics Office; Batangas (1%), Bulacan (8%), Cebu (10%), and Davao (22%).

The MHA franchise offers three business models. A standard clinic offers basic services, which include Puretone Audiometry, Speech Audiometry, Middle Ear Impedance Audiometry, and Earmold and Noise Protectors. The second clinic franchise model offers basic services along with OtoRead Capability, which includes a user-friendly handheld device used for testing newborn babies, children, and adults. As for the third model, it offers basic services plus pediatric-focused hearing tests such as Auditory Steady-State Response (ASSR), Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR), Otoacoustic Emission Test (OAE), and behavioral hearing tests Interested to franchise an MHA clinic? Visit manilahearingaid.com.ph/franchise or send an email to frbusdev@manilahearingaid.com.ph.

#HearToAid #HearLifesSpecialMoments #ManilaHearingAid