At Press Time

By Jerry Helzner, Senior Editor

Should You Add a Hearing Center?

A Practice Offers This Complementary Service.

■ For years, seniors who comprise a large percentage of the patient base of Ocala Eye in north-central Florida have been asking their Ocala Eye doctors where they could go for a reliable assessment of their hearing. Now, they have their answer.

Eight months ago, Ocala Eye added a hearing center, headed by a board-certified hearing instrument specialist. The hearing center is equipped with the latest automated equipment for hearing evaluations and fits patients with high-quality digital hearing aids.

The decision to add a hearing center was based on a patient survey that pointed to three specific reasons for going ahead with the idea, says Bob Tilley, practice administrator. First, patients trust Ocala Eye because they have already established a relationship with the practice. Second, patients can have the convenience of obtaining professional services for vision and hearing all in one office. And third, patients are already personally acquainted with the staff members and the quality of care offered by Ocala Eye.

"Seventy to 80% of the patients who completed the survey were totally enthusiastic about the idea," says Tilley. "When we started to book time slots for hearing evaluations, we filled up a month of slots in a couple of days. That’s when we knew we were going to be successful." Tilley views a hearing center as a relatively low-risk investment for a practice. The primary costs include paying for the services of a hearing instrument specialist (who could be full time or part time), purchasing/leasing hearing testing equipment and converting appropriate space for use as a hearing center.

Hearing specialist Kate Maen conducts a computerized hearing exam.

Ocala Eye views the hearing center as a highly complementary service because it is primarily geared to the needs of the same seniors who also require regular vision care. In many cases, an eye patient’s hearing problem is evident to the ophthalmologist, who can then suggest a hearing evaluation.

The hearing center service is only available to those individuals who are also going to Ocala Eye for their eyecare needs.

"We have only marketed the hearing center to our existing patient base," says Tilley. "But apparently our patients are talking about it to their friends and neighbors because the hearing center has brought us a number of new eyecare patients."

Ocala Eye set up its hearing center with the help of a consultant company that has expertise in hearing. The company screened applicants and gave Ocala Eye the names of three qualified hearing instrument specialists. Ocala Eye then interviewed all three and made its choice. In addition, the company advised Ocala Eye on selecting state-of-the-art hearing testing equipment and top-quality digital hearing aids.

"If there is any problem with a hearing aid, the outside company takes care of it," says Tilley. "It’s a great arrangement."

Tilley explains that performing a hearing evaluation of a patient and fitting a hearing aid is more than a one-time event.

"The patients come back for annual hearing tests (reimbursed by Medicare or private insurances), have their hearing aid adjusted if necessary, and will tend to purchase a new hearing aid every 3 to 5 years," says Tilley. "So if the patients are happy with our center, we should see them again and again."

Tilley believes that Ocala Eye’s experience with its hearing center could be suitable for almost any ophthalmology practice. Ocala Eye is a relatively large practice with five locations and an ASC, and what Tilley calls "a significant patient base." Thus, the strategy to only market internally has proved effective. Smaller practices may need to develop a a more broad-based marketing strategy. Practices interested in pursuing this idea can contact Bob Tilley at bob@ocalaeye.com.