Audiology

Whitstable Medical Practice offers an Audiology Service which is accessible to any patient registered within East Kent aged 16 and over.

Upon referral from your GP, you will be sent referral paperwork with a number to contact us to book an appointment with our team of Audiologists.

What is Audiology?

If you think you may have some hearing loss you should visit your GP as soon as possible. A common hearing problem can sometimes be caused by a build-up of wax; your GP should have checked this before they refer you. Your GP may refer you for an audiology assessment where an audiologist will test you further to determine the cause of your hearing loss and work with you to find the best possible treatment.

The Appointment

At your appointment the Audiologist will discuss your hearing difficulties. Please bring someone with you if possible. A full hearing test will be carried out; this is painless and normally takes around 15 minutes. The test consists of you wearing headphones through which you will hear sounds of different frequencies, some of these sounds are high tones like a bird singing, others are deeper more like a foghorn. During the hearing test you will be asked to press a button when you hear the sounds.

After completion of your test, the audiologist will plot your test results on a graph and explain his findings in a clear non-medical way. This might help you understand why you may have been having problems hearing different tones of voices, or being unable to hear clearly in certain situations, like background noise. If a hearing loss is found then a digital hearing aid may be of benefit to you. The type and amount of hearing loss present will determine the type of aid and ear mould needed to help. The aids themselves are small and worn behind the ear. They are very easy to use and ideal for people who may have some handling difficulties. Your aid will need batteries and these can be obtained from the surgery. An operating manual with clear instructions is provided along with a battery book to obtain your free hearing aid batteries.

Contacting us

If for any reason you cannot make your appointment, or if you have any queries following an appointment, please contact our Clinical Services Patient Coordinators on 01227 284314 or 01227 284315 (Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm).

Whilst you are under the care of the Audiology clinic please ensure that you inform us of any change to your address or telephone number.

Clinic Location

Estuary View Medical Centre
Boorman Way
Whitstable
Kent
CT5 3SE