hearing aids advice for elderly mum please

[godhelpmeplease]

Hi all, my mum is in her mid 80s and after a few years of using NHS hearing aids she finds they just arent working for her (she recently went for a check/assessment and the slight adjustment they made to her current aid made no difference).
Can anyone recommend a brand/type of hearing aid - she recently went to a high street place and was quoted £2400 for Level 3 choice - I don't know if that means anything to anyone.
I'd be grateful for any suggestions or sources of information. She's based in London if that's relevant and is happy to go and try aids (one of the two places she went to will let you try them out for a couple of weeks which is ideal as the shops tend to have an artificially quiet environment).
Bear in mind that her hearing is bad even with just one person in the room, ie with no loud or background noie.
Thanks

Hi @godhelpmeplease I'm an audiologist, I work in the private sector. Unfortunately it's not as easy as a stranger on the internet recommending a specific make or model.

I take into account the size and shape of the ear canal, the audiogram, speech in noise test results and lifestyle as a bare minimum when trying to give recommendations of appropriate hearing aids. Even then it often takes a little trial and error to get the optimum results for each client as no one is completely predictable in their response to hearing aids.

Many high street providers will offer more than 2 weeks trial, usually up to 2 months in a few cases. Most will require payment up front which will then be refunded in full if aids aren't suitable.

Phonak, Widex, GN Resound, Oticon, Starkey are all reputable brands. It's often a case of just trying a couple and seeing which manufacturers sound quality she gets on better with

Many thanks Tinkles, I believe her current NHS ones are Oticon but it's good to have the other names too. She is not expecting perfect hearing but as I say even in a quiet flat with no background noise it's become very poor indeed and she is otherwise in remarkably good shape for her age.

Have uou looked at Costco?

I haven't looked at Costco, thanks for the tip, looks promising

NHS oticon hearing aids will not be the same as the technology available privately, there are many levels of technology per manufacturer and a good Audiologist will match your mum up with something that suits better than what she currently has.

I use Phonak. Gosh they are brilliant really. I have bilateral severe deafness due to early adult meningitis. I am not in UK, but had them on trial for 8 weeks and one year free follow up for any issues.

The clarity is unbelievable and my life has been transformed. When I take them out at night to charge up I cannot hear a flipping thing, and to think I was like that for years before I got the aids I mentioned. I don't know how I got through life, but I did.

Covid was a nightmare though. I was hospitalised three times with serious emergencies and I could not hear the medics, masks meant I could not do the lip reading and facial signals, and no one was allowed to be with me either. I had the aids for the third admission and honestly the difference was incredible.

However, everyone is different and a good audiologist is a must.
Mine cost €3,500. I can claim tax relief on that so will get a hefty refund from the taxman in the New Year!

I'll bear that in mind Tinkles and have included Oticon with the possible brands for my mum. Thanks for the rec Codexa, I'm really glad you had a great improvement with the Phonak, we are now looking at places that offer 2 month trials