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1 hour ago, kmetzger said:

I think I may be ready for a hearing aid. Does anyone know where I can take a hearing test in the Lake Chapala area?

Yes.  There is a good hearing aid man, Polo, who comes on Mondays and some Saturdays to an office in the rear building  at the Lake Chapala Society on 16 de Septiembre in Ajijic.  He has the testing booth and all the equipment to test your hearing and arrange purchase of your choice of hearing aids. He also does repairs and will "tweak" your hearing aids for better reception when you need it.  He speaks perfect English, if that matters.

You don't need to be a member of LCS to use his services.  You will need to go to the hallway signup station and sign up for an appointment when he is there next. Since he is quite busy, I'd suggest going to do that several days in advance.

My family members have been using his services for years and are very well satisfied.

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2 hours ago, Mainecoons said:

Costco also has a hearing center with a sound proof booth and they do hearing tests.  I'd be concerned about Polo's tests since they are subject to interference from ambient noise.

 

 

I´m with you on this one.  Tried Polo twice, with different aids, without much success as his test results and aids didn´t get the job done.

Went to the Costco out on Lopez Mateos, dealt with the audiologist named Gustavo for testing and aids, and totally better results.  It´s further to go, but in my case, worth it.

I´m now a happy camper who can hear a whole lot better.

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I love my Costco hearing aids. Although I happened to buy the pair at the Seattle Costco which is 4 miles from my Condo, the two Guadalajara Costco's that I have visited, both carried the same brand and product as I purchased in Seattle for about the same price.

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Using Costco:  When you first get  hearing aids, they often need "tweaking" until they are "just right". If you don't mind the trip to Costco, then there's no problem.  For me, there is.

Next:  If your aids need repairs, you must go to Costco. If it's not something they can fix on the spot, they send your aids away and you're without them.  Unless you have two pairs, that's a problem. Polo started out in the field doing repairs and will usually fix the problem while you wait.

Re "ambient noise" at Polo's testing booth:  There hasn't been any in that area on a Monday, in my experience.  Getting your hearing tested during the Childrens' Art Program sessions on a Saturday may not be a good idea, however.😏

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Just now, Mainecoons said:

Truthfully I don't find him to be the most communicative person around here I've dealt with.  Just not very customer oriented IMO.  Your mileage may vary.

I've had nothing but positive experiences, so it's a case of YMMV.

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Experiences are OK, don't get me wrong.  Just not a very customer oriented personality a bit too brusque for my tastes.  I'll continue to use him for repair but I want someone more accommodative and willing to take the time to answer questions when spending big bucks on new aids.

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3 hours ago, gringal said:

Using Costco:  When you first get  hearing aids, they often need "tweaking" until they are "just right". If you don't mind the trip to Costco, then there's no problem.  For me, there is.

Next:  If your aids need repairs, you must go to Costco. If it's not something they can fix on the spot, they send your aids away and you're without them.  Unless you have two pairs, that's a problem. Polo started out in the field doing repairs and will usually fix the problem while you wait.

Re "ambient noise" at Polo's testing booth:  There hasn't been any in that area on a Monday, in my experience.  Getting your hearing tested during the Childrens' Art Program sessions on a Saturday may not be a good idea, however.😏

FYI? The Children's Art Program no longer meets on that patio.  They are now on the front lawn of the house on the South Campus and all of their art supplies have also been moved from those bodegas.

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Very good video.  One question comes to mind, and that is whether the cost of top level hearing aids is unnecessarily inflated because of a simple profit motive, or is it really that much more costly to produce?   They are so expensive that they are out of reach of people on a tight budget.  Being able to purchase anything OTC that could help the problem to any extent, and at an affordable price, is going to make a major difference in many seniors' lives.  Growing old is already a royal PITA, but becoming isolated by deafness as well is even worse.  I have never understood why it isn't covered by any kind of insurance since it's  so essential to well being.

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Talking about price. I was told that the price charged at Costco is much more reasonable than most outlets.

I bought a pair of Resound hearing aids in Sep 2016 from the Seattle Costco hearing aid center for only $2,599.98 US.

Yes, that's quite a bit of money, but much less than what the video above suggested many hearing aid centers would charge.

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The Medical center in the laguna mall has a Doctor that preforms hearing tests on Wednesday the test is not free I paid 1000 pesos  He speaks perfect english and he is not  running the tests just to sell you a hearing Aid.  He was able to pinpoint my problem, which was fluid in the middle ear which can be corrected  with meds and would not have been cured with a hearing aid

Carlos Alonso MD

Licensed Audiologist

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  • 1 month later...

Hearing aid follow-up

Got my testing done by Polo at LCS. I have moderate hearing loss. My Blue Cross insurance covers up to $2,500 for hearing aids, so I searched online and found https://www.audicus.com/hearing-aids I ordered a pair for $ 1,700. The package arrived a month ago, but DHL was unable to deliver because I needed a medical certificate to import the devices. I'm having them shipped to my son in Austin, where I will pick them up in December when we will be visiting him. 

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My husband and I have used Polo for years and I still do. Very nice guy, accommodating and knowlegeable. I agree with all that Gringal says about him and his services. I had two close friends some years ago who didn't hit it off with him and went to Cosco. Just my friend's bad luck, but repairs were needed and he did indeed have to wait months to get his aids back. We never had that problem with Polo.

Lexy

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5 hours ago, Lily H said:

Can someone traveling here soon bring you your hearing aids if you send the person the medical certification?

Thanks for the suggestion, Lily. That would be great. But an average person can't get a medical certificate here. Only organizations with that authority would have a medical certificate. I know that from personal experience. A few years ago, I ordered a psychotropic drug for my wife from Canada. I was unable to get a certificate even from her Mexican psychiatrist. If someone was travelling to Austin and picked it up from my son, I don't think he or she would have any problem bringing it back without a certificate.

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On 6/2/2019 at 7:24 AM, Mainecoons said:

I've had good results with Polo repairing my Costco (Oticon) hearing aids.  However not sure if he would be able to program or reprogram these or newer hearing aids.  I think that requires some pretty specialized equipment.

 

Polo can maintain those aids for which he has software. When I first started using him he did not have the right software for the aids I had bought in the states at Costco. Before going to Polo I went to the Costco near the Galleria Mall a half dozen times. First I tried on my own then Costco sent a staff person who spoke English, then I brought my own interpreter -  nothing worked. As someone above said hearing aids need to be tweaked occasionally so local is a lot easier.

I have a pretty severe hearing loss and have been wearing aids for about thirty years. I have bought 2 pair for myself and one set for my husband and am totally pleased with Polo.

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