As you may or may not have heard, the Des Moines Register recently published an editorial entitled, “Where’s the logic in these licenses?”
This article directly addresses the odd, confusing and startlingly low requirements that must be met in order to become a hearing aid dispenser in the state of Iowa.
Because this article was released during the Iowa State Fair, our booth in the Varied Industries Building held a large number of discussions on the issue.
We are encouraged by the number of people that share our concerns. We’re also glad the Register took the time to bring attention to this major issue; an issue we feel has been ignored for far too long.
It goes without saying that health and well being is a top priority for most of us and since we presently have 36 million American adults reporting some level of hearing loss, you can see why proper diagnosis and treatment of hearing loss is of the essence.
Of course, in order to receive appropriate care, you MUST have a qualified individual overseeing your diagnosis, treatment, after-care, etc.
As an organization committed to our patients best interests, we feel the standards in our great state of Iowa are far too low. That’s why, here at Woodard, we only allow Doctors of Audiology to test and fit hearing aids.
For us, this isn’t about drumming up more business or trying to out-do our competitors, it’s about giving you the ability to live your life to the fullest.
We think one way to do this is to raise the bar in our industry and make sure that people who aren’t qualified to test and fit hearing aids aren’t doing this job.
We refuse to settle for less than the best and we hope you will do the same.
