Better connection to specialists
People like Brennen, who have complex hearing conditions, can use teleaudiology to see experts who may not be available in their local communities. Brennen says she visited multiple doctors in Pennsylvania, but none specialized in tinnitus. Treble Health connected her with specialists who not only understood her condition but also lived it themselves.
“Most people would not drive more than 30 or 45 minutes for a doctor’s appointment,” says Ben Thompson, an audiologist in San Francisco and founder of Treble Health. “Now, with telehealth, you can meet with someone who’s a specialist who may be in a different city or different state, but you can have that visit and have that specialized care.”
Comparable clinical outcomes
Research shows that telehealth audiology can deliver most hearing aid services without compromising on quality.
In a 2023 study, Egyptian researchers compared remote and in-person hearing aid fittings and found no significant differences in patient satisfaction. Similarly, a 2023 study published in BMC Digital Health found that remote fittings — including programming and adjustments — worked just as well as traditional in-clinic appointments.
Convenience and efficiency
Seeing your audiologist from home saves time and lets you avoid the hassle of going into a clinic. That’s especially helpful for patients who have mobility challenges, such as those who have difficulty driving or who use a wheelchair. It also makes it easier for those living with caregivers or in nursing homes to get their hearing aids adjusted and tuned without going back and forth to the doctor.
“People are busy,” Thompson says. “They don’t want to have to drive 30 minutes, wait in a waiting room for 20 minutes, drive home for 30 minutes and take time off work when they can instead do it from home and it takes 30 minutes total.”
Device support for real-life situations
Cristobal says some of the best fine-tuning for hearing aids happens outside the clinic, in the real-world locations where hearing loss actually causes problems.
Cristobal says she sometimes asks patients to return to a spot where they’ve struggled to hear — like a busy café — and connect with her for a video appointment so she can tweak their settings on the spot. “For really tricky environments, it can be a game-changer,” she says.
Limitations and challenges of teleaudiology
While teleaudiology offers convenience and access, it does have limitations, especially for complex care.
You still need an in-person hearing test
No matter what hearing issue you have, it’s important to start with an in-person hearing assessment, Cristobal and Thompson say.
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