Episode 2228 notes

Shannon Schneller knows why most people don’t come in with mild hearing loss and wait until they have moderate hearing loss. “But moderate hearing loss responds very well if it's treated it's just so much easier if we can catch it mild to moderate than if the loss goes to severe hearing loss”.

She will tell us why you could lose more of your ability to discern speech the longer you wait and the hearing aid will be less effective once loss has gone on too long.

Today, we explore the Hearing Aide Experience, and if you think you’re too young, the fact is, untreated hearing loss can start as early as 35 years old.

This is season 22 episode 28 of America's Healthcare Advocate. I'm Cary Hall.

And if you need my help or have something to share? Send me a message: Contact Cary Hall, America's Healthcare Advocate:

https://www.americashealthcareadvocate.com/contact-us

Episode 2228 Transcript:

Cary Hall

And now America's Healthcare Advocate, Cary Hall. Hello, America. Welcome to America's Healthcare Advocate show broadcasting coast to coast across the USA here on the HIA Radio Network. My producers, Mr.. Dave Thiessen, man who's behind the camera, puts all these shows up on our podcast and YouTube platforms. Garner Cowgrey, the in studio here at our Cumulus Studios in Overland Park, Kansas.

00;00;24;18 - 00;00;49;15

Cary Hall

As we come to you today with this broadcast, by the way, speaking YouTube and podcast, we have 810,000 downloads now of the shows because of all of you listening and all the people out there that follow us, on the YouTube and podcast channel, we thank all of you and greatly appreciate it. Joining me in studio once again for is this what the fifth or sixth or eighth or ninth?

00;00;49;18 - 00;01;11;22

Cary Hall

Which one is number six? This is, see my producer, Dave Thiessen, always knows this is our sixth show. Shannon. Yeah. So, Shannon Schneller’s here. From Focus Hearing. She is the owner of Focus Hearing. You know, a lot of you really like these shows. Download them and listen to them. And obviously, there's a reason for that because you're learning here the consequences of letting hearing loss go untreated.

00;01;11;22 - 00;01;33;28

Cary Hall

So let's just kind of jump in there. I was looking at this today. Untreated hearing loss can start as early as 35 years old. So what I saw that floored me. I recognized mine around 50, but I didn't realize that it could start as early as 35. But I and I didn't really understand it for a couple of years until I started realizing that, yeah, I'm not.

00;01;33;28 - 00;01;34;19

Cary Hall

Something's not.

00;01;34;19 - 00;01;43;10

Shannon Schneller

Right. The things you physically have to do to compensate. Yeah. Yes. Well, and that's what's so interesting because mild hearing loss is so difficult to detect.

00;01;43;12 - 00;01;43;24

Cary Hall

Okay.

00;01;43;25 - 00;02;02;24

Shannon Schneller

You just don't notice it because it's so slow and gradual that a mild hearing loss. I very rarely when I run a hearing test see one really. Because usually a first time hearing test patient comes in. It's because they're at moderate right. And they're having the issues that the mild you didn't detect. But it was starting to just compile.

00;02;03;00 - 00;02;06;24

Shannon Schneller

And then you get to that breaking point where oh yeah, we're already at a moderate hearing loss.

00;02;06;24 - 00;02;15;15

Cary Hall

That's interesting because, you know, when I looked at, the moderate hearing loss and it you're talking about, mumbling.

00;02;15;15 - 00;02;16;26

Shannon Schneller

Right, right, right.

00;02;17;01 - 00;02;35;13

Cary Hall

So like mumbling, not being able to hear in restaurants. That was probably the one that pushed me to find out something was wrong. Now I only have one ear, as you well know, because I lost the other one to a brain tumor in 1985. But, so for me, it was compounded because it was, it was.

00;02;35;13 - 00;02;38;25

Cary Hall

I only had one ear. If it if I can't hear with that one, I'm in big trouble.

00;02;38;25 - 00;02;58;21

Shannon Schneller

Exactly, exactly. So when you think about your when you look at the audiogram, which is the graph of your hearing, there's a speech spectrum area in there and so typically what happens is that your hearing has deteriorated in the part where the consonants are. So you're still hearing the vowel, the vowel portion of speech. Interesting. And vowels give us volume.

00;02;58;21 - 00;03;17;17

Shannon Schneller

So that's why a patient, you know, someone's talking, you know, there's a conversation going on because you're hearing the volume portion, but what you're not hearing is if you have high frequency hearing loss or sometimes moderate that portion of that speech range, you're not hearing the consonants and consonants have nothing to do with volume. That's your clarity. That's your speech understanding.

00;03;17;20 - 00;03;32;14

Shannon Schneller

That's the difference between a bowl of grapes and pull the drapes. That's just chief and cheese, deaf and death, you know, wrist risk, the decisive consonants that you're hearing, the vowels and you're hearing part of the conversation. But it's not clear.

00;03;32;14 - 00;03;52;09

Cary Hall

So this, this this really, crystallized for me. I was at a meeting with the folks in Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City at Jack's Stack restaurant. There were five of them, plus me, right? And we were at a big table and I couldn't hear half of what people were saying. I have enough trouble. Troubles is on one side because I didn't hear.

00;03;52;09 - 00;04;07;05

Cary Hall

Now I don't have that problem because you convinced me to get a separate to get a transmitter. Take it from one ear to the other actually. Yeah. I'm not going to do that. And then I did it. I'm like, okay, Shannon, I'm doing it now. I yeah, but but I remember that luncheon and I walked into that.

00;04;07;05 - 00;04;24;24

Cary Hall

I was humiliated, I was embarrassed myself because I couldn't hear what the hell they were saying to me. And we were talking about significant issues with the rollout of a bunch of new products. And I felt like a real fool. And that's when I first knew I had a problem. Right. So and that was right around 50, probably 52, 53 somewhere in there.

00;04;25;00 - 00;04;26;19

Cary Hall

And then from then on, it just.

00;04;26;21 - 00;04;41;17

Shannon Schneller

Well, and that's a huge reason why it's all about the brain and how it processes. So you can take ten patients with the same set of, you know, the same hearing loss and put the same ten sets of hearing aids on them. And they'll all have different results because it's how their brain processes. Yeah. The other thing.

00;04;41;17 - 00;04;56;05

Cary Hall

I do was, first, since I was reading on this this morning, is the brain has to work harder. Yes. Now I'll get 90% of the people that are listening. Just don't know that you're making your brain work harder because you can't hear how.

00;04;56;05 - 00;05;13;08

Shannon Schneller

Your your whole body is going through fatigue, mental fatigue that you know, you're having to do things to compensate. And it happens so slowly over time, you may not even recognize you're doing it. The leaning, the lip reading, the I'm going to position myself against the wall in the restaurants at the back. I'm, you know, just little things.

00;05;13;08 - 00;05;14;20

Cary Hall

Like I used to do that all the time.

00;05;14;20 - 00;05;33;17

Shannon Schneller

And if you think about years and years of you looking at somebody and the mental fatigue that that requires because your ears aren't doing their job, your visual portion of your brain is working overtime. So it's just that portion of your brain we have untreated hearing loss is not getting information. And then the visual part of your brain is working overtime to compensate for that.

00;05;33;17 - 00;05;35;05

Shannon Schneller

And at the end of the day.

00;05;35;08 - 00;05;38;11

Cary Hall

Oh, you're you're you're oh, what a day. I had a.

00;05;38;11 - 00;05;45;11

Shannon Schneller

Lot of my patients when we treat their hearing loss is like I just didn't realize at the end of the day how tired I was from coping with this.

00;05;45;16 - 00;06;13;20

Cary Hall

See, it's funny because when I read fatigue, I'm like, all right, really? That's an issue. Well, now that you're explaining it, it's clearly an issue. And I could and that all goes back to the brain working overtime. Right. So so so I guess the word to the wise is if you even think you, your spouse, maybe it's a parent, you know, whatever the case may be that, you're noticing these things get a baseline.

00;06;13;20 - 00;06;23;22

Cary Hall

Go go get go. No. Come see you get a baseline. Just find out. You know, it either is or it isn't. Right. If the baseline comes back and says, no, you don't have that problem yet.

00;06;23;25 - 00;06;39;26

Shannon Schneller

And then I would also encourage you to go one step forward and be accepting of the fact that maybe it's not normal. You swear it's normal because it's happened. So slowly that the people around you are complaining about. I've repeated it now. I said to and you said to everybody else around about you. So and I know that's hard.

00;06;39;27 - 00;06;48;05

Shannon Schneller

There's a psychology to hearing loss. And I understand that. But just be ready to be accepting of a surprise because you may not have recognized the process.

00;06;48;07 - 00;07;05;26

Cary Hall

Yeah. But then I come back on the other side of that and, you know, it's funny, yesterday I left the house to go to a meeting is a breakfast meeting, and I got halfway down the road to get ready to get on the freeway. And I'm like, I don't have my hearing aids. And I literally turned around, drove right with that.

00;07;05;28 - 00;07;32;04

Cary Hall

I'm not going to sit at breakfast in a restaurant and not be able to hear who I'm speaking to and who I'm talking to, especially with the noise around me and the beauty of this hearing aid, which is the Phonak that you got me, is it's got a setting on it for restaurants. I can punch that setting, and that allows me not to listen to five things at one time that a hearing aid would typically pick up other people talking and and I actually turn because I can't function without this thing.

00;07;32;09 - 00;07;37;22

Cary Hall

I mean, literally not even at home anymore, do I? Well, I've got it on 20. I just I can't function with out it.

00;07;37;23 - 00;07;41;08

Shannon Schneller

And what's happened is that your brain now has a comparison.

00;07;41;11 - 00;07;42;28

Cary Hall

See, I didn't think so.

00;07;43;00 - 00;07;49;15

Shannon Schneller

Going around with you, hearing loss, not realizing. And then once we correct it and you get used to that, and then you take that away, and.

00;07;49;15 - 00;07;51;00

Cary Hall

Then the brain is going, what's wrong? You.

00;07;51;01 - 00;07;56;25

Shannon Schneller

Now you realize where you were walking around at and your brain start to prefer that information.

00;07;56;27 - 00;08;19;21

Cary Hall

All right. We're coming up on the break. We come back from break going to talk more about this and about what you can do to prevent cognitive decline. That's another big part of this. Surprise, surprise. We'll be back after the break. If you want help, you can call them at (913) 754-2144 or myFocusHearing.com two locations one at 10990 Quivira.

00;08;19;21 - 00;08;43;25

Cary Hall

The other one is 7500 West 160th Street in Overland Park, Kansas. They've got two locations you can literally walk in. They do that. There's surprise a lot of people don't. Stay tuned. We'll be right back after the break. You're listening to America's Healthcare Advocate broadcasting coast to coast across USA. Don't go anywhere.

00;08;43;27 - 00;09;01;14

Cary Hall

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00;09;01;17 - 00;09;17;15

Cary Hall

Visit SageonRQ.ai and get your report card today. I'm Cary Hall. Now you know.

00;09;17;17 - 00;09;38;11

Cary Hall

Welcome back. You're listening to America's Healthcare Advocate show, broadcasting coast to coast across the USA here in studio with me today. Shannon, tell her from Focus Hearing. You know, these folks really take care of you. Shannon is great. She's taking care of me, taking care of my wife. She does a great job. If you want help. This isn't conglomerate hearing aid with, you know, 50 offices around the country.

00;09;38;13 - 00;09;55;16

Cary Hall

This is right here in Overland Park. (913) 754-2144. You want personal service. You want customer service. That's what you're going to get here. You're not going to get that when you go to these chain stores. Oh, by the way, if you buy it at Costco good luck Nicole. Stand standard line and hope you can get somebody who's going to talk to you.

00;09;55;21 - 00;10;15;04

Cary Hall

It's a little different when you're dealing with somebody at Focus Hearing. And their prices are excellent. And they've got a product for everybody out there, regardless of your income or your age. And they've got two locations, one at 10990 Quivira, the other one at 7500 West 160th Street. Like I said, they've got walk in hours. The surprise not a lot of people do that.

00;10;15;04 - 00;10;38;21

Cary Hall

They do so this cognitive thing, keeps coming up as I was going through, you know, research doing this this morning, we've done multiple of these. They've noticed six that are six show. Now this is seems to be a huge part of this, which I'm telling you, 90% of the audience out there does not recognize the connect the two.

00;10;38;21 - 00;10;46;24

Cary Hall

Right. Hearing loss to cognitive decline and then all the things. So explain that like you did we were on break. You just did that. Go back to that again.

00;10;46;27 - 00;10;55;15

Shannon Schneller

Sure. When when you we run a hearing exam I want you I want to know your thresholds. What beeps can you hear. Low pitch. High pitch. I want to know what that is.

00;10;55;15 - 00;10;56;18

Cary Hall

That's one part. That's your.

00;10;56;18 - 00;10;57;15

Shannon Schneller

Brain. That's your fitting.

00;10;57;15 - 00;10;58;18

Cary Hall

Prescription. Okay.

00;10;58;20 - 00;11;14;02

Shannon Schneller

I also need to know what is your brain looking like when we fire it back up. Because when you have untreated hearing loss, those neurological pathways between the ear and the brain can atrophy. So the ear is just a delivery system. The brain is the processing system.

00;11;14;02 - 00;11;21;12

Cary Hall

So that's why when they talk about putting greater stress on the brain, making the brain, you just connected the dots.

00;11;21;14 - 00;11;38;24

Shannon Schneller

Yeah. And so when that portion of your brain is not being stimulated, and then we run a hearing test and we run those speech recognition scores because there's a huge difference between hearing a beep and being able to understand what was said. And so when you have untreated hearing loss, what happens is that speech recognition score.

00;11;39;00 - 00;11;39;23

Cary Hall

Yes it does.

00;11;40;00 - 00;12;00;22

Shannon Schneller

And that never gets better. That is one of those things at once it declines. It never goes back to 100%. So you can have two patients with the same hearing loss, same hearing aids, but their cognition might be different. And so the result is different. And guess what gets blamed for that. The hearing aid. Because the hearing aid can only help the health of that.

00;12;00;22 - 00;12;03;12

Shannon Schneller

You're that you put it on okay.

00;12;03;19 - 00;12;04;21

Cary Hall

How interesting.

00;12;04;22 - 00;12;13;21

Shannon Schneller

So if your best situation in quiet is hearing 85%, hearing aid is not going to take you to 100, it's going to help you hear at 85% where you're at.

00;12;13;24 - 00;12;20;21

Cary Hall

The key there is, if you don't treat it, what's the number? What's the percentage you're going to. People go without treating this in this country.

00;12;20;23 - 00;12;22;23

Shannon Schneller

Only 1 in 4 typically get help.

00;12;22;23 - 00;12;30;02

Cary Hall

Yeah. 1 in 4. Right. Okay. So that's pretty small number right. So the problem is that if you keep letting it go.

00;12;30;08 - 00;12;32;22

Shannon Schneller

You're cognition or your ability to process that well you're.

00;12;32;22 - 00;12;33;21

Cary Hall

Not going to get it back.

00;12;33;21 - 00;12;34;02

Shannon Schneller

No.

00;12;34;02 - 00;12;40;28

Cary Hall

And you'll get you'll stop it. You'll get it back. You'll make some of it better. But you're not going to ever get it back to live. It was if you leave it alone.

00;12;40;28 - 00;12;43;08

Shannon Schneller

And it's even worse when you get in crowds and noise.

00;12;43;08 - 00;12;44;01

Cary Hall

Oh yeah.

00;12;44;05 - 00;12;44;17

Shannon Schneller

It's even.

00;12;44;17 - 00;12;45;15

Cary Hall

Worse. Yeah.

00;12;45;17 - 00;13;02;27

Shannon Schneller

Yeah. Which we test for, because once again, if I don't test for that, I don't know. And so it's just information for me. So I can lay a clear expectation for you. Like this is what your brain and your ears are doing right now. This is what we can expect. I can't give you the moon because that was about five years ago.

00;13;02;29 - 00;13;22;17

Cary Hall

These are things I didn't think about. This is moderate hearing loss. Safety can be affected. So then they list missing doorbell rings. So you know you you you have a food delivery. They ring the doorbell. You've got a sign for two. If you get you don't even know they're there okay. Or or other issues that are more important than traffic.

00;13;22;17 - 00;13;35;20

Cary Hall

Sound instructions, important instruction. The doctor tells you to do the following things for before you have a procedure done a colonoscopy or this or that, or whatever. A blood draw. You didn't hear it, so you didn't do it.

00;13;35;21 - 00;13;36;16

Shannon Schneller

Misunderstood it.

00;13;36;16 - 00;13;38;15

Cary Hall

Yeah. And then so that's where you're right.

00;13;38;15 - 00;13;40;18

Shannon Schneller

Because that's what you heard. That's what your brain told you to hear.

00;13;40;19 - 00;13;42;21

Cary Hall

No, that's not what you said. Oh actually, it is what they.

00;13;42;21 - 00;13;43;01

Shannon Schneller

Said.

00;13;43;01 - 00;14;05;01

Cary Hall

Right. Yeah. So it's interesting that that, you know, how that how that all kind of just tumbles downhill does. Yeah. The other thing I thought was fascinating was that when I was looking this up, moderate hearing loss responds very well if it's treated. So talk about this because it's that, this little surprise to hear that.

00;14;05;03 - 00;14;11;10

Shannon Schneller

Well if you think about digging yourself out of a hole do you want to be knee deep hip deep chest deep. Okay I'm out.

00;14;11;13 - 00;14;11;27

Cary Hall

Okay.

00;14;12;00 - 00;14;32;20

Shannon Schneller

So like I said we it's very rare that we find a mild hearing loss. It's usually moderate. And so that jump back to normal is a little bit easier than if you wait and you're down. And severe because that's just a bigger jump back to normal. That's your brain having to receive sounds and process sounds it doesn't know what to do with because it's been 1520 years since it death across that.

00;14;32;22 - 00;14;39;18

Shannon Schneller

And so it it's just so much easier if we can catch it mild moderate than that severe.

00;14;39;18 - 00;14;58;15

Cary Hall

So the message really there to the audience listening and all of you, you know, on the podcast and YouTube and the rest of it is if you think you've got an issue, remotely, you go get the gist. Go get the test. You're going to know if you go get the test, then you're here. There it is. It's not subjective.

00;14;58;15 - 00;15;04;06

Shannon Schneller

It's it's. Well, and I know a lot of patients like I don't want to wear hearing aid. Makes me look old. I understand that you don't.

00;15;04;06 - 00;15;05;21

Cary Hall

Want to hear it. For what reason?

00;15;05;25 - 00;15;10;06

Shannon Schneller

They don't want to look old or be perceived as old. But. And then what? I politely say I'm.

00;15;10;06 - 00;15;15;11

Cary Hall

77 years old. I've been wear these things for, I don't know, 20 years longer.

00;15;15;14 - 00;15;17;24

Shannon Schneller

Okay, interestingly enough, that is an issue.

00;15;17;26 - 00;15;29;12

Cary Hall

I know I hear this so okay, let's move. But but but but you can't see mine. Well it's behind my ear, you know, you can't even tell on the camera. You cannot tell I've got this thing on.

00;15;29;13 - 00;15;38;07

Shannon Schneller

So what I politely say to them is all the things that you're having to do to cover up your hearing loss also is contributing to maybe making you perceived as being all too.

00;15;38;10 - 00;15;39;16

Cary Hall

How interesting. I.

00;15;39;18 - 00;15;41;19

Shannon Schneller

I'm having to repeat to you 2 or 3 times.

00;15;41;20 - 00;15;42;12

Cary Hall

Oh yeah.

00;15;42;15 - 00;15;52;15

Shannon Schneller

You know, and I'm not trying to be mean. I'm just like, if that's the reason that you feel like it's going to make you perceived to being old, the things that you're doing to cover up your hearing loss is actually the problem.

00;15;52;18 - 00;16;04;12

Cary Hall

Okay. So when I, when I look at that and I weigh the consequences of not doing it right versus the vanity of an and not just picking on women here, men of the same way. Okay. Of oh, I have to.

00;16;04;16 - 00;16;05;13

Shannon Schneller

Say I get it.

00;16;05;16 - 00;16;26;17

Cary Hall

You know, for the same reason men die their hair. By the way, you'll notice my hair is white. I don't diet, just make it a point. But, you know, you have to think of what are the consequences of, you know, you know, connecting to my vanity or fixing a problem that's going to have all these cascading events.

00;16;26;24 - 00;16;30;29

Cary Hall

They're going to cause me to have a more difficult life, which is really what? This come down.

00;16;31;00 - 00;16;41;06

Shannon Schneller

You don't enjoy your life that you have because you're not hearing well, you start avoiding things. You don't go out with your friends. You don't. That's what I hate to see in my patients, is I can fix your hearing loss. Let's get your life back.

00;16;41;09 - 00;16;42;13

Cary Hall

Yeah.

00;16;42;16 - 00;16;54;03

Shannon Schneller

You know, and I understand we're fighting 25, 30 years of stigma of bad hearing aids. I get that, but this is such a great time to be wearing hearing aids, because this sound technology is amazing.

00;16;54;03 - 00;17;10;14

Cary Hall

This Phonak that I've got, you know, I don't know if it's got ten different settings on here that I can do, from restaurant to TV to music to whatever the case may be. So you it's from when we come back to the break, we're going to talk about some of the breakthroughs in technology and what's out there now and what was out there.

00;17;10;14 - 00;17;34;16

Cary Hall

And I'll talk about some of the hearing aids I had from some of the national hearing aid providers. You'll find this most interesting if you want help. It's Focus Hearing. It's myFocusHearing.com is website (913) 754-2144. They have real customer service, but I have a problem. I can walk in during the walk in hours. And either one of the facilities where those ladies take it, fix it, I get it right back, okay.

00;17;34;16 - 00;17;55;07

Cary Hall

It really is quite remarkable. I don't have to make an appointment for something like that. They may have appointments, but that's not something I have to do. Phone number 913754 2124. Don't wait. If you think you've got a problem, give them a call. We'll be right back after the break. You're listening to America's Healthcare Advocate broadcasting coast to coast across the USA.

00;17;55;07 - 00;18;08;00

Cary Hall

Don't go anywhere.

00;18;08;02 - 00;18;26;29

Cary Hall

Welcome back. You're listening to America's Healthcare Advocate show broadcasting coast to coast across the USA. Want a shout out to our affiliate in Topeka, Kansas? 1440 KMAJ, the Big Talker. We all thank you, all of you up there that are part of our listening audience here on the Cumulus Radio Network. We greatly appreciate all that.

00;18;27;05 - 00;18;46;27

Cary Hall

So, you know, we're going to we're going to talk now about new technologies. And they really do have the newest technologies. Had Focus Hearing. They're not trying to sell a brand that is a national brand owned by the company that's, you know, owns the doctor that owns a testing facility that owns, serves, you know, you have a host and I'll let Shannon talk about this.

00;18;46;27 - 00;19;09;07

Cary Hall

You have a host of choices you can make from price, technology, whatever you're looking for. They can show you the difference. Then you can make an informed decision. The way you do that, you get an appointment. (913) 754-2144 get the test done, get an appointment and eat. Look, I went through three different companies before I went to focus, before I found her.

00;19;09;14 - 00;19;24;29

Cary Hall

And that's whenever I said, you've got to come on the radio because I didn't know half why I kept having problem after it all was buying decent hearing aids. I was spending money, but they weren't working and I couldn't attend. To get in, to get somebody to fix it was impossible. Oh, we don't have time today. Or I'd go sit.

00;19;24;29 - 00;19;44;15

Cary Hall

Well, we're going to have to get you to come back. It's not the way it works. At focus (913) 754-2144 or myfocushearing.com. They'll help you. They've got two locations. So this is interesting because it's changing rapidly. Very much so I mean this hearing aid that I have I think we did this what, three years ago or something.

00;19;44;17 - 00;20;03;27

Cary Hall

This one is such an improvement over what I had. And I can do so many things with that I couldn't do before. But you know, now this is almost becoming obsolete because they've they've got newer ones now that are making all the difference. So yes, talk about the changes technology. And now you're saying you told me how breakthroughs I involved in that.

00;20;03;28 - 00;20;06;16

Shannon Schneller

Well, we've had AI and hearing aids for years.

00;20;06;21 - 00;20;07;07

Cary Hall

Really.

00;20;07;08 - 00;20;07;27

Shannon Schneller

We just before.

00;20;07;27 - 00;20;08;05

Cary Hall

It was.

00;20;08;05 - 00;20;20;29

Shannon Schneller

I well they just don't call it that. It's just about learning your behaviors you know and just for reading the the environment. So I has been in hearing aids for a while now. It's just not called that.

00;20;21;03 - 00;20;26;29

Cary Hall

So when I, when I, when I just turned mine on that do anything and it goes to automatic. That's I read.

00;20;26;29 - 00;20;27;01

Shannon Schneller

It.

00;20;27;01 - 00;20;28;15

Cary Hall

Well I'm automatic.

00;20;28;15 - 00;20;45;28

Shannon Schneller

So you're hearing aid is is going to be set within the parameters that I have it. And that's going to be adjusting within where you're at, what your tolerances are, where I have you set. So as we get these hearing aids, get more advanced. The AI they they're starting to split them into like one portion is focusing on the noise.

00;20;45;28 - 00;20;58;22

Shannon Schneller

One portion is focusing on the speech. So you're just going to get a better sound sound quality. You're going to hear better in crowds, you know. And we talk about Bluetooth all the time and how much this is just helped patients accept their product.

00;20;59;00 - 00;21;02;26

Cary Hall

A hologram, because everything that runs this thing is on here.

00;21;02;29 - 00;21;13;00

Shannon Schneller

And you can you can watch music, you listen to your podcast. Yes. You know, that's become a really important feature. And it's helped patients accept their hearing aids, faster, in my opinion.

00;21;13;05 - 00;21;13;29

Cary Hall

Yeah.

00;21;14;01 - 00;21;22;07

Shannon Schneller

The drawback to that is it can be a little bit of it can be a little glitchy, because hearing a Bluetooth isn't always full power. It can be a little glitchy. So that's why walk in hours.

00;21;22;10 - 00;21;32;15

Cary Hall

Or you had trouble with her. She came in. You fixed it, right? I remember this distinctly. And it was you had to reset it and boom, boom, boom. I just got a hard nut. Yeah. That's right. Now it works just fine.

00;21;32;15 - 00;21;43;02

Shannon Schneller

So now we've got the small hearing aids that are discreet, that don't show, that are rechargeable, that do some calls because we've been waiting on a small hearing aid that will take phone calls in stream. We've been waiting. That's all that's out.

00;21;43;02 - 00;21;44;16

Cary Hall

I hate those things.

00;21;44;18 - 00;21;44;29

Shannon Schneller

You know.

00;21;44;29 - 00;21;46;13

Cary Hall

I turn my off, I live, I take.

00;21;46;13 - 00;21;48;04

Shannon Schneller

Phone calls. So interesting. Some patients.

00;21;48;06 - 00;21;49;00

Cary Hall

I hate it.

00;21;49;01 - 00;21;55;04

Shannon Schneller

If that's not working. My hearing aids not working. Are you hearing okay? Oh, you're fine, but my Bluetooth is not working. It's just become that important.

00;21;55;09 - 00;21;58;15

Cary Hall

Yeah, well, the Bluetooth works. I just don't want it connected to my phone.

00;21;58;15 - 00;22;00;07

Shannon Schneller

Every patient's different. Is so interesting.

00;22;00;10 - 00;22;10;16

Cary Hall

I don't want to get on my truck and try to and get phone calls. And it doesn't shut the radio off on the truck because I'm on no. Right. So I know I don't do that, but that's choice. The you've.

00;22;10;16 - 00;22;37;22

Shannon Schneller

Got choice. And that's what that's what we talk about. And it's just like, I don't make but you don't have to be in a premium hearing aid. What I love that great is the best product. But if we can do just as much with something that's not as expensive, that's great. But if you want that important feature that that premium has for that two hours of the month that you spend with your family at dinner, that's a conversation to have because you want to have access to that feature, because that time is really important to you.

00;22;37;25 - 00;22;56;03

Shannon Schneller

So we talk about like where you go, what you do, what environments you have and what's important to you. You might be in this environment 2% of the time and this 110, but that 2% is more important than the ten. So it's all about where you go, what you do, what's important to you. And that helps me figure out what hearing aid is going to work and what's not.

00;22;56;06 - 00;22;57;29

Shannon Schneller

And then I explain the options to you.

00;22;58;01 - 00;23;17;15

Cary Hall

You know, the the way I look at this, I told Lori this when we were doing that, I said, because she's I call her the Minister of Finance because she every nickel she, she, she manages the money both for the company and for us. I mean that just she's the minister, you know, you're making investment in your health.

00;23;17;16 - 00;23;30;11

Cary Hall

Yes. If you if you had to have if you had an optional for a surgical procedure that was going to make a difference in your health, are you going to ask for the costs or are you going to value it based on how much is that going to improve my.

00;23;30;11 - 00;23;31;09

Shannon Schneller

Impact your life?

00;23;31;10 - 00;23;47;25

Cary Hall

Yes. Well, this is the same thing. In fact, in a lot of ways this is more consequential from the state if you don't have your cognitive abilities, especially as we become seasoned citizens. Okay. Your quality of life goes to hell in a handbasket. Well, I'm just saying you.

00;23;47;25 - 00;23;59;26

Shannon Schneller

Can stay independent longer. That's the point. It's really important to, a lot of people, like, don't think of as just treating a hearing loss ring hearing aids. We're improving your overall life so that you can remain independent longer.

00;23;59;28 - 00;24;00;20

Cary Hall

Yeah.

00;24;00;22 - 00;24;01;15

Shannon Schneller

It's aging well.

00;24;01;22 - 00;24;20;26

Cary Hall

Yeah. That. Yeah. That's that's exactly you know, that's exactly what it is. And and so, you know, when I think about this from the standpoint of cost, everybody makes the decision based on what they have available to do. But if you've got the money. Yeah. And you want to get a first class hearing aid, I had the other ones.

00;24;21;02 - 00;24;37;03

Cary Hall

I didn't know the difference. I was buying the best that they had, which turned out not to be very good. And then trying to get service for them was impossible. Okay. I mean, that's that comment I made early coming in off the break was I literally would go to this place, sit there and wait to get in after I've been told I had it.

00;24;37;03 - 00;24;52;03

Cary Hall

But no, this is going to take longer for this person than this person. So you're going to have to come back another time because they were training people through their like, you know, it wasn't like it is your facility where you go in, you have an appointment, you come in, you take care of them, you know, whatever the case may be.

00;24;52;08 - 00;25;00;24

Cary Hall

And if you do have a problem that walk in thing, to me that's a huge you can just walk in between those. What is it, ten to 2 to 3, 10 to 3 okay.

00;25;00;26 - 00;25;02;16

Shannon Schneller

That's just because we're staffed for that. Yeah.

00;25;02;21 - 00;25;03;28

Cary Hall

But the point is.

00;25;04;04 - 00;25;05;15

Shannon Schneller

I don't want you wait two weeks.

00;25;05;15 - 00;25;20;00

Cary Hall

That's generous to be able. It's not working. I was you, I was in your facility. I remember when this was in as gentleman came in and he had trouble. And the lady at the front desk. You had a technician? She took it, fixed it. He goes, oh, my God, that thank you so much.

00;25;20;07 - 00;25;22;01

Shannon Schneller

And I don't want to waiting two weeks to see.

00;25;22;03 - 00;25;29;03

Cary Hall

Which is which is what I have to do before. And then you can't hear for two weeks. You're pulling your hair straight in. Yeah. Because it's ridiculous. So.

00;25;29;05 - 00;25;35;06

Shannon Schneller

So that's the hearing aids are becoming very, very much a support. You need that support.

00;25;35;09 - 00;25;36;04

Cary Hall

Yeah.

00;25;36;07 - 00;25;43;29

Shannon Schneller

So I know that there's different ways in getting hearing aids. I understand that there's niches for everybody. But this has become very much a customer service product.

00;25;44;00 - 00;26;00;15

Cary Hall

Yeah. And I will say this you buy it off television of one of those ads. Yeah I'd like to know how the hearing test worked out. You probably didn't have one. Okay. Or if you did, did it over the phone or something or you buy it online. Good luck. Okay. You know, it's kind of like when you buy that health insurance online, okay.

00;26;00;15 - 00;26;16;21

Cary Hall

And then you have a claim issue and you can't find anybody to call. I call the one 800. I don't give a damn number. That's basically what happens. Okay. This is the same thing. Okay. Try going back to those people and asking to fix it, or getting it to Costco and asking them fix it or Walmart or one of the other big box stores.

00;26;16;21 - 00;26;37;26

Cary Hall

It's a whole different experience. My point is about focus is I want to know when I need help. It's going to be there. And to me, that's probably the single biggest thing that helps me with you all is that I know I can get in there and get something done if I have a problem, right, okay. And or I can't figure out how to do something, fine, I'll just show up, right?

00;26;37;26 - 00;26;38;18

Cary Hall

They'll show me how to do.

00;26;38;19 - 00;26;47;00

Shannon Schneller

And it's Bluetooth can be very nuanced with hearing aids. And so it's we try and help you over the phone as much as we can, but if we can't just come in, we'll fix it. Get out then.

00;26;47;06 - 00;26;56;15

Cary Hall

Yeah. And you're not you're not being charged for this. Let me point that out. Okay. And on the issue of affordability, how many different lines are you offering now up.

00;26;56;15 - 00;27;08;20

Shannon Schneller

All of them okay. All of them. Just because I want to have everything available to me to help that patient. You can, in my opinion, professionally, it's hard to just stay with one manufacturer and fit every patient with that one mean you can't.

00;27;08;27 - 00;27;25;03

Cary Hall

Well, first of all, you know, these phones are not cheap. They're expensive. I chose them because of all the ones we tested. I was like, this thing is amazing and I didn't care how many I want the best one, because this is my health. We're talking about. But if you can't afford that, you have other ones that are available to do a good job.

00;27;25;03 - 00;27;45;08

Cary Hall

And that's the point. You've got something. If it's not a size 44 overcoat, okay, doesn't fit everybody. She's got different products for different people in different financial situations. That's really what they try to do. And I think that's really the biggest thing. You know, a friend of mine the other day said, you know, the word customer service. Service has gone out of customer service.

00;27;45;08 - 00;28;00;06

Cary Hall

And I'm like, yeah, it is, because mostly you're calling some numbers somewhere and hoping you. I had somebody tell me this morning, yeah, I called and I asked the person where they're at and I said, you work for the company. Yeah. Where are you? India. It's a call center in India.

00;28;00;12 - 00;28;01;15

Shannon Schneller

Right. Pretty common.

00;28;01;15 - 00;28;12;10

Cary Hall

Yeah it is. Good luck understanding of number one. And number two. Are they really going to be able to help you. That's the whole point I'm making. I think that's why people need to pay attention. And if you're going to do it, do it right.

00;28;12;15 - 00;28;20;10

Shannon Schneller

Well let's talk about coming up when you purchase a hearing aid. What is included? What is it? You can kind of get into the nuance when.

00;28;20;10 - 00;28;38;18

Cary Hall

We come back to the break. That's what we'll do. We'll talk about that. What you should be asking correct before you buy it. That might be really helpful. Once again, it's focused hearing (913) 754-2144. My focus here Inc.com they can help you. They do a great job. I know because that who takes care of my hearing aids?

00;28;38;25 - 00;28;52;01

Cary Hall

We'll be right back after the break. You're listening to America's Healthcare Advocate broadcasting coast to coast across USA.

00;28;52;04 - 00;29;12;14

Cary Hall

Welcome back to America's Healthcare Advocate broadcasting coast to coast across the USA here on the HIA Radio Network. You know, all these shows, they've put some up on the podcast YouTube platform. There's a reason 810,000. I think that's what they've said. People downloaded this show. You've got a relative. Maybe it's your husband, maybe it's your wife, maybe it's your father, your grandmother.

00;29;12;14 - 00;29;34;14

Cary Hall

Whatever the case may be, have them go listen to this. If they hear what the. Oh, that's happening to me, I, I, I can't I have to read the closed caption. I can't listen to TV anymore. Have them listen to the broadcasts. You can't fix a problem till you know you've got a problem. And what can does in plain English is explained.

00;29;34;16 - 00;29;53;03

Cary Hall

You've got a problem if you're experiencing these things, that's what we're talking about. And if you're seeing, you know, let's say they're seasoned citizens chronologically challenges like me, I'm 77. If you're seeing mood swings for they're irritable or you're having problems, you know, a lot of that's caused by this, okay. And if you're not treating it, that's what's going to happen.

00;29;53;05 - 00;30;15;00

Cary Hall

Get them some help, have them go listen and then have them pick up the phone and call (913) 754-2144 and go in and see Shannon and get the problem taking care of the website. myfocushearing.com two locations here in Overland Park. All right. So let's talk about this. Go into this text topic because as we came out you were talking let's talk about this right now.

00;30;15;01 - 00;30;16;26

Shannon Schneller

What is included like yeah.

00;30;16;28 - 00;30;20;15

Cary Hall

What should I ask when buying a hearing aid. This is really going to be interesting.

00;30;20;15 - 00;30;34;18

Shannon Schneller

And this is what you get. So I don't want to say difficult, but there's we have to keep everything straight because there's a difference between a Medicare patient, a Medicare advantage patient, a true hearing aid benefit through your insurance. There's so many things that are good.

00;30;34;19 - 00;30;37;17

Cary Hall

For your sponsored health care. It's very different than very, very different.

00;30;37;17 - 00;30;51;12

Shannon Schneller

And what's included in that is very, very different. Yeah. So then you've got some patients will you get all this in some patients. Well you don't get all that because your insurance says you don't. So that's where we feel like it's really important. Like we have paperwork. So this is what you get. This is what you don't get.

00;30;51;12 - 00;31;11;20

Shannon Schneller

Just so it's fair. So you understand that the person next to me in line got something different than I did. Well, your insurance kind of dictated that. So we'll talk about that a little bit later. But when you when you think about why are hearing aids costing so much there when they launch your product? There's been so much research and sound engineering development for the previous three years.

00;31;11;22 - 00;31;15;27

Shannon Schneller

Go into that product. So a lot of it is research and development.

00;31;15;29 - 00;31;34;04

Cary Hall

Well, it's just like prescription drug. The big article, Wall Street Journal reporting Moderna has now come out with the cancer treating drug. That's the second one. The first one was extending a life for people with pancreatic cancer. This one's on melanoma. You know how many billions, not millions of dollars year to develop that drug that. Yeah. Same thing.

00;31;34;04 - 00;31;35;03

Cary Hall

Right. Different scale.

00;31;35;03 - 00;31;59;25

Shannon Schneller

But no, but it's the same idea. It's it's the idea that the hearing aids didn't show up you nowhere. So you have the cost of the hearing aids themselves. Then you have, you know, the testing and evaluations, the follow up care, the fitting, the programing supplies, cleaning and maintenance, Bluetooth support, warranty loss and damage coverage. Like all of those things, ask about when you are discussing your hearing aids.

00;31;59;26 - 00;32;02;28

Cary Hall

Before you walk out the door and find out if the fact that wasn't covered right.

00;32;02;28 - 00;32;03;29

Shannon Schneller

Because you're you're or they're.

00;32;03;29 - 00;32;06;26

Cary Hall

Going to charge you every time you have a problem and you need to get it fixed.

00;32;06;26 - 00;32;16;00

Shannon Schneller

Because a $3,000 out of hearing aids versus $5,000 out of hearing aids, what you're getting can be very, very different. And that could be because your insurance dictated that a little bit.

00;32;16;03 - 00;32;25;08

Cary Hall

Let's switch to that because this is fascinating. Yes. So Medicare Medicaid you know right a lot of seniors okay. Let's talk about so what are they actually providing.

00;32;25;11 - 00;32;35;03

Shannon Schneller

So straight Medicare at the federal level does not cover hearing aids anything. And they it's not medically necessary to hear better right. So I'm I.

00;32;35;06 - 00;32;41;03

Cary Hall

Don't I love that it's not medically necessary to hear about it. So no but you can fall down have balance. It's kind of.

00;32;41;03 - 00;32;49;03

Shannon Schneller

The ridiculousness of it. Right. So what I would like to hope in the future is that because of all the links with cognition and dementia and Alzheimer's untreated.

00;32;49;03 - 00;32;50;12

Cary Hall

Hearing, you think.

00;32;50;14 - 00;32;54;15

Shannon Schneller

I would like to think that in the future, somehow we're going to get some sort of pendulum swing.

00;32;54;19 - 00;32;55;19

Cary Hall

I'm hoping maybe.

00;32;55;19 - 00;32;59;27

Shannon Schneller

I'm hoping just because I see it in my patients, the difference between.

00;32;59;29 - 00;33;00;23

Cary Hall

Yeah, how.

00;33;00;24 - 00;33;02;22

Shannon Schneller

Much better their life is when they're hearing.

00;33;02;23 - 00;33;22;00

Cary Hall

Well, if it's a GLP one drug, we get that approved pretty fast. But you know, that's yeah. But we can't treat hearing loss right. So you know talk is so I had a Medicare supplement right. I had it through I have it through Blue Cross Blue Shield. There is a 365 blue program which gives a discount. Okay. That's pretty easy to understand.

00;33;22;07 - 00;33;32;03

Cary Hall

Here's what the hearing aid would normally cost. Here's what your discount. Here's what is Medicare Advantage is a whole the whole different B because they're now dictating to people go to certain places and.

00;33;32;03 - 00;33;33;21

Shannon Schneller

They're dictating what I fit.

00;33;33;23 - 00;33;34;27

Cary Hall

Okay. So so it.

00;33;34;27 - 00;33;44;05

Shannon Schneller

Should be a little frustrating. So straight Medicare doesn't cover anything. Medicare supplement typically does not unless you have like a designated discount program.

00;33;44;05 - 00;33;46;08

Cary Hall

Right. Which you probably should look in city.

00;33;46;08 - 00;33;53;01

Shannon Schneller

So there's a difference between insurance allowance, which is a straight benefit. Like if you're a federal employee, you have a $2,500 spend every five years.

00;33;53;01 - 00;33;53;18

Cary Hall

Yep.

00;33;53;20 - 00;33;54;21

Shannon Schneller

That's an allowance.

00;33;54;22 - 00;33;55;08

Cary Hall

Pretty nice.

00;33;55;13 - 00;33;57;08

Shannon Schneller

You can spend that however you want. Good to be.

00;33;57;08 - 00;33;59;02

Cary Hall

A federal employee. You know what I mean? It used to be.

00;33;59;02 - 00;34;18;13

Shannon Schneller

Every three years. Now it's five years. Yeah. So that's an allowance that's very different than a Medicare advantage plan with a benefit or a co-pay option. So you've got like your Aetna Humana devoted UnitedHealthCare. Those are all offering hearing aids in different ways. Some of them give you a flat benefit.

00;34;18;15 - 00;34;20;15

Cary Hall

So there's cash to spend.

00;34;20;17 - 00;34;24;09

Shannon Schneller

But you have to spend it in a certain place.

00;34;24;11 - 00;34;27;02

Cary Hall

So they're controlling what you can buy where you can buy it.

00;34;27;02 - 00;34;43;20

Shannon Schneller

So if you come in and you're saying, well, I have Aetna and I'm going to spend $3,000, that does not come to me. That goes to their third party administrator. Okay. And then that third party administrator lines up the product that I can fit at that price point. Okay. So we talk about all of that. So you might have a hearing aid.

00;34;43;20 - 00;35;01;15

Shannon Schneller

There's nothing out of pocket for you. But what is the service package look like. What does the aftercare look like. What are you getting? If you spent $3,000 there, could you get a better hearing aid spending $3,000 somewhere else? Well, you don't have that option. You have to spend it here. So there's just things behind that, those benefits.

00;35;01;16 - 00;35;03;18

Cary Hall

That's why you ask questions, right?

00;35;03;18 - 00;35;10;04

Shannon Schneller

Whereas other options like Humana devoted United Health Care, they have co-pays. So you're not.

00;35;10;06 - 00;35;12;08

Cary Hall

You make your own decision.

00;35;12;10 - 00;35;14;28

Shannon Schneller

This is your copay. This what you want to be.

00;35;15;03 - 00;35;16;26

Cary Hall

Here's what you're going to get at this price point.

00;35;16;26 - 00;35;30;04

Shannon Schneller

This is what I can get you. Yeah. At this price point. This is what I can get you. Some of them don't offer premium products. They call it their premium because that's the premium that they offer. But they not may not be the premium in the market.

00;35;30;07 - 00;35;39;21

Cary Hall

Here's the here's the million dollar question. Do the carriers own any of these facilities that are servicing or selling these products? You don't have a name. I'm just telling you yes. No.

00;35;39;21 - 00;35;43;09

Shannon Schneller

And think of think about our health care system and how that typically works.

00;35;43;12 - 00;35;55;25

Cary Hall

Okay. Yeah. So I think you just heard the answer. Right. Okay. So look, if you've got a benefit you definitely want to use it, but you better ask it. Understand. So you know what differences. Yeah there is a big.

00;35;55;25 - 00;36;14;01

Shannon Schneller

Difference because you might look oh I'm going to get Aetna. And I've had 25 pound or spend. That looks better than Humana at 6.999 and nine per year. That is not the same hearing aid. So you might get something for zero out of pocket. But it's a very basic hearing aid. Or you can spend 6999999 here. But that's a premium hearing aid.

00;36;14;08 - 00;36;25;27

Shannon Schneller

So it's not comparing apples and apples. So that's really important. And sometimes even the you know, the specialists that talk about the Medicare supplement plans and Medicare Advantage plans, sometimes they don't even know.

00;36;25;28 - 00;36;28;00

Cary Hall

Oh, I know that for a fact. It's complicated.

00;36;28;00 - 00;36;36;06

Shannon Schneller

So I've even had those come to my clinic and say, can you kind of help my patients out and describe the differences? Because you don't know.

00;36;36;09 - 00;36;53;08

Cary Hall

You know, this is why we do these shows. There's a lot of information. It's kind of like drinking out of a firehose. When you listen to Shannon go through all this stuff, it's critically important. And that's why we do this, to educate and inform. That's what we always say and that's what we're doing here. But if you want help, if you really maybe you've got something, it's not working.

00;36;53;08 - 00;37;12;15

Cary Hall

Maybe you don't like it, maybe you're not treating it, maybe you don't know (913) 754-2144 I wouldn't put her on the air if I didn't think what she does is what needs to be done. And that's why she does it for me and she does it for my wife. Focus Hearing website myFocusHearing.com. They know what they're doing and they do a good job.

00;37;12;20 - 00;37;15;27

Cary Hall

Thank you for going to show. Thank you. We got number seven coming up soon.

00;37;15;28 - 00;37;17;15

Shannon Schneller

All right.

00;37;17;17 - 00;37;33;17

Cary Hall

Now I leave you with this song from Albert Einstein, the one who follows the crowd, will usually get no further than the crowd. The one who walks alone will find himself in places no one has ever been. Remember, friends, it's a funny thing about life. You can refuse to accept anything but the very best. You most often get it.

00;37;33;20 - 00;37;44;06

Cary Hall

Thank you for listening to America's Healthcare Advocates Show. Broadcasting coast to coast across USA. Goodbye America.

00;37;44;08 - 00;37;50;26

Unknown

You can do.