The hearing industry landscape has drastically changed over the past several years, particularly for the independent private practice owner. Access to hearing aids has become ubiquitous; in addition to the internet, consumers can go to Costco, SAMs Club, CVS, and Walgreens to purchase hearing aids (or PSAPs). With the recent passage of the Over-the-Counter (OTC) hearing aid act, I hear or read comments posted by colleagues about how this disruption has forced practices to re-group and think about how to strategically respond in a way that is in the best interest of their clinical practice.
While I no longer provide direct patient care, I interact with audiologists and hearing instrument specialists on a daily basis, offering clinical and business solutions in the form of products and/or information. Given all the recent disruption, as an employee of a multi-line distributor of audiology supplies, I started to wonder whether the durable and/or disposable supply business has also been disrupted in a way that hasn’t yet become apparent. Specifically, I am curious to find out where audiologists, audiology assistants, and hearing instrument specialists purchase their clinical supplies (e.g. audiology supply company and/or Amazon?) and why they rely on these sources for their supply needs.
If you are an audiologists, audiology assistant or hearing instrument specialists, take 5 minutes to complete a survey I created to answer some of my questions. My hope is to gain some insights as to where YOU and/or your primary place of employment are turning to for your clinical supply needs. Your answers will remain anonymous. Click the following link to provide your honest feedback: SURVEY
