private hearing test for children

[thisisyesterday]

is it possible to get a hearing test done privately?

ds2 was under the local audiologist for over a year, but he was discharged based on ONE good hearing test
given that he had glue ear, which comes and goes anyway, this seemed a little odd

aaanyway. long story short, I am now concerned that he really isn't hearing properly. I can go and ask to be referred again to the hospital, but last time that took over 6 months and I would like to have it done now.

so can i pay to see a private sudiologist for a child? and if so how do i find one? (a brief google has left me confused)

They do an NHS drop in where I live, you can just go and wait and get them checked.

I don't know if that is of any help to you at all, but, hey, it's a bump right?

I know someone who used chears and was happy with the service. Were you referred to audiology last time or ent? Sometimes ent has a shorter waiting list than audiology if you're thinking glue ear.

I'm pretty sure you can ask your go to refer you on to a private audiologist or ENT consultant. I got referred to a private ENT consultant by my gp.

My dd2 was referred by our GP to an ENT consultant. My private healthcare (via work) covered grommets + 6 mths afterwards...however as they can take 1 yr to fall out, we decided to stay private and pay for additional tests - until the consultant was happy. Each set of test costs £125 - just to warn you!

You need an ENT or paediatric audiologist not an adult one as the testing is different. Try the Portland

last time we were referred to audiology, which is what we need. He needs another hearing test to see if the glue ear is back... can he get that if he is referred to ENT rather than audiology?

we don't have a drop-in sadly, but thanks for the bump nagoo :)

ninjagoose, chears is a bit far for us, but thank you anyway, I think that's the kind of thing I'm looking for

Portland is a bit closer, but still a trek into London (tho we're just down in w. sussex)

shiv and peggoty, thanks for the info, esp on costs! I really just want an initial hearing test done to see if there is still a problem. I am undecided as to whether he genuinely can't hear me or whether he is just in the habit of going "whattttt" every time I speak. His own speech has come on a LOT recently, which coincided with his good hearing test, so i just don't know!

will speak to the GP and see if they can refer us privately, or if they think an ENT appt might come through quicker

ENT do hearing tests as well.

my ds1 and ds2 were both referred to a private ent (ds1 also had to have adenotonsillectomy) who ordered hearing tests for both of them. it was very costly (mostly covered by private healthcare through work) but worth every penny. all done at the portland with the wonderful Mr Hartley and his team who i couldnt recommend highly enough.

slightly off topic but i love w sussex!

DS2 has a private hearing test when he was 2.2yrs due to no speech. We weren't happy with the time we were having to wait to go throught the NHS so asked to be referred privately.

It was about 3 years ago but I think we paid about £100 - £120 and it was done at the audiology dept at the local hospital.

You might want to call the Elizabeth Foundation ( Portsmouth) or the Ndcs for ideas

Many GP's surgeries can now do screen hearing tests to determine whether referral is necessary. I discovered this as DD has had various ear problems over the years and recently we thought they might be back. The GP got one of the nurses to do a screening test, DD did fail -but she will never pass due to previous problems.
Another private suggestion is the Mary Hare Trust in Newbury this is a division of the Mary Hare School a specialist grammer school for the deaf and they were involved in the initial trails of the newborn hearing test the HVs now use.

Hi, you can get private hearing tests if you are willing to pay yourself. If you wish to use insurance then you need to ensure you get an authorisation number from your company and they may require ENT to be involved first off. I run my own private hearing services as well as working in audiology in the NHS.

FYI glue ear otherwise known as congestion behind the eardrum is very common and in a classroom at any one time up to 45% of children can be suffering. It is generally temporary in nature and should clear on its own but can be persistent and certainly can impact on a child's ability to discriminate speech well in quiet and particularly in noise. It is often worthwhile getting a hearing test to determine hearing detection levels and ideally a speech discrimination test to determine how any hearing difficulty is affecting functional ability.