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Top 10 ingenious tips For when Dad's lost his hearing aids! Can You Hear Me Now?
Episode 126 • 3rd July 2024 • Eldercare Success • Nancy May, CareManity, LLC
00:00:00 00:16:44

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Tracking Lost Hearing Aids: Tips and Solutions

Welcome to another episode of "Doing it Best with Eldercare Success," titled "Can You Hear Me Now?" In this episode, your host and family senior care expert, Nancy May, dives into the all-too-common issue of lost hearing aids and gives you practical solutions to keep those costly devices safe. From simple low-cost solutions that might remind you of your own camp days to more costly high-tech options and Bluetooth trackers, Nancy shares valuable tips to help you and your loved ones avoid the frustration and expense of losing hearing aids.

Whether your elderly parents are at home, in a care facility, or even if the dog has a taste for expensive tech, this episode is packed with creative and affordable ways to ensure those tiny but vital devices stay put.

Listen in for real-life advice and innovative solutions to keep the hearing aids secure and your mind at ease.

Key Points:

  • 🖊️ How to Labe for safety
  • 🧵 Simple "Tye'm On" tools
  • 🖊️Serial help - really!
  • 📱 Find them anywhere with Bluetooth trackers.

Helpful Links:

Helpful Links:

Hearing Aid tools and solutions

How you can help:

If you found this episode helpful, please share it with a friend, family member, or even someone you see at your local coffee shop who might be dealing with similar caregiving challenges. Don't forget to subscribe to "Doing it Best with Eldercare Success" on your favorite podcast platform and leave us a five-star review. Your support helps us continue to bring valuable content to caregivers everywhere. Visit EldercareSuccess.Live to leave Nancy a voicemail with your questions or comments for a chance to be featured on the show.

🎧🎤Host: Nancy May has gone from the Boardroom to the Emergency Room to care for her aging parents and educate business owners, corporate employees, and leaders with more strength and confidence in doing well and doing good.  Nancy is the five-star author of How to Survive 911 Medical Emergencies, Step-by-Step Before, During, After! and an award-winning expert in managing the complexities of caring for an aging parent or family member, even from over 1200 miles away, or more for a Free File-of-Life to www.howtosurvive911.com. 

Nancy is also the  Co-Founder of CareManity LLC and the private FaceBook group Eldercare Success.

Disclaimer: The views, perspectives, and opinions expressed in this show are those of the show guests and not directly those of the companies they serve or that of the host or the producer CareManity, LLC. The information discussed should not be considered medical, legal, or financial advice. Please seek advice from your own personal medical, legal, or financial advisors, as each person’s situation is different. (c) Copyright 2024 CareManity, LLC, all rights reserved. CareManity is a trademark of CareManity, LLC.

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Transcripts

Nancy May:

What do you do when mom and dad keep losing their hearing aids

Nancy May:

time and time and time again, and the care facility doesn't really care?

Nancy May:

Or better yet, they're at home and the dog ate it.

Nancy May:

Stay tuned.

Nancy May:

There's a lot more in store on this one.

Nancy May:

Hearing aids lost and found.

Nancy May:

Hello everybody.

Nancy May:

It's Nancy May with another episode of Doing it Best With Eldercare Success.

Nancy May:

This one is "Can You Hear Me Now?"

Nancy May:

You know, the old Verizon commercial that used to say, can you hear me now?

Nancy May:

Can you hear me now?

Nancy May:

Well, guess what?

Nancy May:

Hearing aids are a little bit like the old Verizon commercial

Nancy May:

and no, they are not a sponsor.

Nancy May:

So in any case, I wanted to share, a question that had come up And I've seen

Nancy May:

a number of times where the issue of losing hearing aids becomes a problem.

Nancy May:

My own dad had this problem as well.

Nancy May:

He really didn't like wearing his hearing aids because they were uncomfortable.

Nancy May:

And I also get it.

Nancy May:

Vanity played a very strong part in that one.

Nancy May:

Oh, I'm not an old fart.

Nancy May:

What do I need those for?

Nancy May:

Well, it's interesting to know that hearing aids or being able to hear

Nancy May:

clearly and better can actually improve your brain health or their brain health.

Nancy May:

When you don't have that sense or a sense that you relied on all your life,

Nancy May:

losing it actually becomes detrimental to your cognitive capabilities.

Nancy May:

But that's for another episode.

Nancy May:

However, the question of losing mom and dad's hearing aids, whether it be

Nancy May:

at home or at a care facility, is an issue that we all have dealt with or

Nancy May:

will deal with at some point in time.

Nancy May:

I recently got a question from somebody saying, do you think I should call the

Nancy May:

ombudsman because mom keeps losing her hearing aids and they can't find them?

Nancy May:

Let me tell you, that is not a case for an ombudsman.

Nancy May:

An ombudsman is only dealing with physical or mental abuse.

Nancy May:

Loss of a hearing aid is not mental abuse.

Nancy May:

Sorry.

Nancy May:

however, if mom and dad are in a care facility, and they keep losing

Nancy May:

their hearing aids, you know what?

Nancy May:

They really don't care about your issues.

Nancy May:

It's not that they're bad people.

Nancy May:

It's just that they have so many other things to deal with.

Nancy May:

And on average, they only have one person, one aid, or one worker

Nancy May:

to deal with anywhere between 17 to 20 residents at a time.

Nancy May:

Can you imagine trying to find five different people's hearing aids?

Nancy May:

those little beige things that are going to blend into any kind of carpet,

Nancy May:

unless it's a black one, but even still, they are small enough that they

Nancy May:

can easily get swept up into a vacuum.

Nancy May:

Or just get swept away or even worse stomped on at up to six or

Nancy May:

even eight thousand dollars pair, that's an expensive footprint.

Nancy May:

However, caring for mom and dad's stuff, like I said earlier, is

Nancy May:

something that those care facilities really don't care much about.

Nancy May:

That includes taking care of mom and dad's antique dresser and their hearing aids.

Nancy May:

It's just not part of their priority or their responsibility,

Nancy May:

to be honest with you.

Nancy May:

in this episode, I'm going to share a list of a bunch of ways that you

Nancy May:

can protect or try and protect the loss of mom and dad's hearing aids

Nancy May:

without a lot of extra cost or expense.

Nancy May:

These are fairly simple.

Nancy May:

There may be a small nominal charge.

Nancy May:

But, it's not going to be an exorbitant charge like going out to get some

Nancy May:

fancy little Bluetooth hearing aid and we'll go through those too.

Nancy May:

But let me start with item number one.

Nancy May:

if mom and dad are in a care facility, make sure that their

Nancy May:

hearing aids are actually listed in their chart as a medical necessity.

Nancy May:

this way, these tiny little items are more likely to be kept when not in

Nancy May:

use, typically at night when mom and dad are asleep, in their med cart.

Nancy May:

That means they'll be given back to them in the morning

Nancy May:

when medication is handed out.

Nancy May:

However, not every facility will do this, and if they're in an independent facility

Nancy May:

where medication is not being managed or dispensed, then you're on your own.

Nancy May:

a second way to at least maybe retrieve mom and dad's hearing aids

Nancy May:

if they get lost is to use a permanent marker to put their name on them.

Nancy May:

Alright, it may not look pretty, but it's doable.

Nancy May:

Remember when you went off to camp as a kid, and mom would either iron in

Nancy May:

your name in the back of your shirt, or your pants, or your shorts, or whatever

Nancy May:

you had, and even use an indelible marker to write your name on the back?

Nancy May:

Well, same principle applies here.

Nancy May:

Lost hearing aid?

Nancy May:

Ah!

Nancy May:

It's Mr.

Nancy May:

May's.

Nancy May:

It says May right on the side.

Nancy May:

Pretty easy.

Nancy May:

And the only cost is an indelible pen or marker.

Nancy May:

Now this is an interesting solution.

Nancy May:

There's actually something called a hearing aid retention cord or clip

Nancy May:

This is like a little, I'll call it sock that goes over the hearing aid and it

Nancy May:

will help them keep clean, you know, like all the wax and gunk that gets in there.

Nancy May:

the neat thing about this is if it's around their neck or looped around the

Nancy May:

back of their neck or attached to a piece of clothing with a little clip

Nancy May:

is that you don't have to worry about those hearing aids falling out and.

Nancy May:

Maybe Into the Toilet Bowl.

Nancy May:

God forbid.

Nancy May:

Gross.

Nancy May:

And I don't even think about flushing those ones out.

Nancy May:

Literally and figuratively.

Nancy May:

Kind of like your first goldfish.

Nancy May:

I don't think I want to remember that one either.

Nancy May:

Okay.

Nancy May:

Sorry Goldie.

Nancy May:

But in any case, there's a link to this particular device.

Nancy May:

in the episode notes.

Nancy May:

Another way to recover your hearing aids or their hearing aids if they get

Nancy May:

lost is by tracking the serial number.

Nancy May:

Now, most hearing aids, because they're expensive, actually have a serial number

Nancy May:

somewhere on them if they get lost.

Nancy May:

kind of like the, the code or the number that's on the front dashboard of your car.

Nancy May:

I actually think it's in about eight different places on your car.

Nancy May:

But in any case, these little numbers are a way to track down who owns them.

Nancy May:

Now it's kind of also like a dog tag, I guess you might say, except

Nancy May:

you don't need a veterinarian or the LostMyDoggie(dotcom) site.

Nancy May:

But in this case, you're going to have to make sure that the care facility has that

Nancy May:

number so they can track down who owns it.

Nancy May:

Now, as I said earlier, care facilities have a lot to deal with, and the

Nancy May:

last thing they care about is mom or dad's $6,000 pair of hearing aids.

Nancy May:

I know, right?

Nancy May:

It's an expensive loss.

Nancy May:

However, you can keep that particular number on your cell phone or

Nancy May:

somewhere with other records just so that you know it's theirs.

Nancy May:

and if they get lost, make sure that Just call the care facility

Nancy May:

and say, Mom's lost her hearing aid.

Nancy May:

Please check the serial numbers on any of the hearing aids that you may have found.

Nancy May:

Mom's is, write out the serial number and make sure they have it.

Nancy May:

Better yet, text it or email it to them so they have it printed

Nancy May:

out as well on the other end.

Nancy May:

Now, you could also forego expensive hearing aids altogether and

Nancy May:

instead opt for hearing amplifiers.

Nancy May:

They are not the same as hearing aids.

Nancy May:

Hearing aids are regulated by the FDA as a medical device.

Nancy May:

Amplifiers are designated solely as sound amplifiers And are designed ideally for

Nancy May:

people who have normal hearing capability, but just need a little amplification

Nancy May:

And you can get those usually for a couple of hundred dollars online.

Nancy May:

So that's an easy substitute.

Nancy May:

If those expensive ones have gotten lost and mom and dad just don't want them.

Nancy May:

You can also get hearing aids at Costco or the VA.

Nancy May:

Now, the Veterans Administration is a great place to get these, especially

Nancy May:

if mom and dad are a veteran or have worked in service at some point in

Nancy May:

time and have the benefits of the VA.

Nancy May:

Now, I have to let you know, Costco, the VA, and most hearing

Nancy May:

aid companies will replace.

Nancy May:

One if lost.

Nancy May:

However, two, three, four, not going to happen.

Nancy May:

My dad lost his several times and we got them replaced once, but we

Nancy May:

couldn't get them replaced again.

Nancy May:

So we had to go back, get another set, pay for them out of his insurance

Nancy May:

benefits, and we went forward from there.

Nancy May:

They also can be fairly uncomfortable Because getting them in your ear the right

Nancy May:

way, so they don't feel like, Ooh, I guess I could call it a prosthetic, is not easy.

Nancy May:

I rode motorcycles for some time and I had something like that, that went in my

Nancy May:

ears to protect my ears from the sound of the wind, which can actually hurt

Nancy May:

your ears and your hearing over time.

Nancy May:

Those little plastic devices that molded in there, supposedly

Nancy May:

custom to my ears, nobody else's.

Nancy May:

were uncomfortable when I got them in there.

Nancy May:

either way, it's a foreign device in your ear.

Nancy May:

And you just have to understand that and explain that to mom and dad if

Nancy May:

they're never comfortable with them.

Nancy May:

That's why I say the small hearing amplifiers don't do that.

Nancy May:

But again, they are amplifiers.

Nancy May:

They are not medical devices.

Nancy May:

Now, I did mention that hearing aids are regulated by the FDA.

Nancy May:

However, there is a new category called OTC or over the counter

Nancy May:

hearing aids, which have been approved by the FDA recently.

Nancy May:

The whole medical audiology community is an uproar over this, because it

Nancy May:

is eating into their business and their industry with lower costs

Nancy May:

to us, not to them necessarily.

Nancy May:

and it also takes the control over what we spend out of their

Nancy May:

hands, just a little bit, which I probably think is not a bad thing.

Nancy May:

However, I want to let you know that the OTC hearing aid market is for those who

Nancy May:

have just mild to moderate hearing loss.

Nancy May:

They can also be bought without a prescription or exam.

Nancy May:

That can be a good thing for us,

Nancy May:

but that's for another episode.

Nancy May:

let me get into another category altogether that might help.

Nancy May:

And I bet you're thinking, Why aren't there hearing aids that have a Wi Fi

Nancy May:

finder or tracking device on them?

Nancy May:

Kind of like when you've lost your phone, or maybe your Tesla.

Nancy May:

Now, I don't have a Tesla, but somebody told me that that

Nancy May:

actually happens with theirs.

Nancy May:

I think that's pretty cool.

Nancy May:

the good news is that there are some hearing aids that have

Nancy May:

Bluetooth built in finders.

Nancy May:

Their price range go anywhere from $2, 000 up to over $6, 000 a pair.

Nancy May:

Yikes!

Nancy May:

Mom and Dad better not lose those lottery, right?

Nancy May:

Now I'm sounding like a parent.

Nancy May:

Please don't let me do that.

Nancy May:

However, I will put a link in the show note to these particular

Nancy May:

items I'm going to mention next.

Nancy May:

You'll have to get each one through a professional audiologist.

Nancy May:

Each of the links in the show notes will help you find specialists in your area

Nancy May:

who can help your parents, or you, make sure that they don't get lost, or at least

Nancy May:

show you how to find them if they do.

Nancy May:

of course, that's dependent on making sure that somebody hasn't

Nancy May:

stomped on them, big feet or not.

Nancy May:

Maybe that's a car rolling over them, unfortunately.

Nancy May:

but here are a few names of hearing aid brands that you can check out

Nancy May:

and get started down on this road.

Nancy May:

I'll start with the least expensive first.

Nancy May:

The first is Jabra Enhance Plus.

Nancy May:

That's J A B R A, Enhance Plus.

Nancy May:

Their cost is around 2, 000 or less per pair.

Nancy May:

Now, I know that 2, 000 is still a lot of money.

Nancy May:

Still, it's an opportunity to make sure that if they do

Nancy May:

get lost, you can find them.

Nancy May:

Consumer Reports gives them a 4 out of 5 ranking for OTC devices.

Nancy May:

Again, this is an OTC hearing aid device.

Nancy May:

most of these Bluetooth hearing aids will hold a charge for

Nancy May:

about 30 hours on average.

Nancy May:

Traditional hearing aids that are powered by a battery tend to last longer, but

Nancy May:

if they get lost, you could be SOL.

Nancy May:

So I guess the inconvenience of having to charge them every night

Nancy May:

is probably not a bad thing.

Nancy May:

The second one I found is called ReSound One.

Nancy May:

R E S O U N D E R E.

Nancy May:

S O U N D 1.

Nancy May:

Their cost is between 2, 500 to 4, 500 a pair.

Nancy May:

They get a Consumer Report Rating of 4 out of 5.

Nancy May:

ReSound actually has a 3D app that can help you locate missing hearing

Nancy May:

aids via the Bluetooth again.

Nancy May:

And third is Phonic.

Nancy May:

P H O N A K, Audio, A U D E O, Paradise.

Nancy May:

I'm not sure having a hearing aid that's going to cost you

Nancy May:

over two grand is a paradise.

Nancy May:

And they can go well over the cost of 6, 000 a pair too.

Nancy May:

However, they have a rating of 4.

Nancy May:

5 out of 5.

Nancy May:

there are several others on the market as well, but these are

Nancy May:

three that will get you started.

Nancy May:

I do want to share that I am not paid by any of these companies to give them

Nancy May:

an endorsement, so we are ad free.

Nancy May:

however, on that note, of course, if you'd like to give me a little

Nancy May:

support, I'd appreciate that.

Nancy May:

You can do so by going to the book, How to Survive 9 1 1 Medical Emergencies, a step

Nancy May:

by step guide before, during, and after.

Nancy May:

Now that's actually helped you too.

Nancy May:

There's a link in the show notes for that as well.

Nancy May:

And you can go to howtosurvive911.

Nancy May:

com to get your complimentary file of life, which I've researched and

Nancy May:

redesigned specifically for you.

Nancy May:

A file of life is something that can actually save your

Nancy May:

life in the ER or mom and dad's.

Nancy May:

Many ER doctors have told us that, especially when seconds count

Nancy May:

on your life or somebody else's.

Nancy May:

you can also help me by giving this podcast a recommendation on Apple

Nancy May:

podcasts and other listening platforms.

Nancy May:

And also by sending me note or posting a comment in each platform.

Nancy May:

Ideally you like this show, so give it a five star rating.

Nancy May:

then also if you have a question or comment that you'd like aired,

Nancy May:

please send me a voicemail on EldercareSuccess.Live there's a little

Nancy May:

blue tab on the right hand side of that page that says, send Nancy a voicemail.

Nancy May:

on that tab.

Nancy May:

You can send me a recording and I'll air it on the show.

Nancy May:

Just send me an, I love you, Nancy.

Nancy May:

This is a great show note.

Nancy May:

I'll be happy to have that one too.

Nancy May:

And so will others.

Nancy May:

Finally, like I always like to say, if you like this show, please share

Nancy May:

it with a friend, a family member, or anybody else that you might see

Nancy May:

standing online at Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts who seems a little stressed out.

Nancy May:

It could be their caregiver too.

Nancy May:

A link to this show can be your gift to them, because it's my gift to you.

Nancy May:

until our next episode, next week on Wednesdays, as always, Be

Nancy May:

well, stay well, and keep caring.

Nancy May:

It's Nancy May at Eldercare Success.

Nancy May:

Bye bye.

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