In Part 2 of this story, Lucy and her mom Georgene shared how Ponto 4 has helped Lucy leave the shadows and feel like a full participant in whatever environment she finds herself in. This week, in the third and final segment of their Ponto 4 testimonial, Lucy and Georgene explain the importance of knowing from which direction a sound is coming and how Ponto 4 has made that easier than ever before.
How is Georgene dealing with giving Lucy more independence now that she’s growing up? Having Ponto 4 certainly is helping ease her concerns with regards to Lucy’s safety.
Thank you, Lucy and Georgene, for sharing your experience with the Ponto 4! We’re so fortunate to have you as valued members of our Oticon Medical bone anchored hearing system family.
Viewers: do you have a Ponto 4 story you’d like to share with others who might be considering an upgrade? Please feel free to contact us at hisi@oticonmedical.com and let us know!
Ready to upgrade your processor? Click to learn how!
Right after Thanksgiving last year, Oticon Medical formally launched a new community for Ponto wearers and caregivers to Ponto wearers in the United States, Oticon Medical Friends. Our goal was to create a safe, private space for wearers and caregivers to share their experiences with their Ponto bone anchored hearing systems, ask each other for advice and tips, and learn from one another’s experiences with hearing loss and treatment. Additionally, the community provides more direct access to Oticon Medical employees for assistance with questions related to technology, insurance, and best practices as well as the opportunity to share ideas for product and service advancements.
Features designed to empower Ponto users and caregivers
Oticon Medical Friends provides helpful features for new and experienced Ponto wearers and caregivers, including:
Easily viewable information on your Ponto device(s), including warranty information. This information is stored securely in your Profile, so only you can see it.
Groups dedicated to different subjects relevant to you. You can easily browse and find the groups that reflect your everyday interests and experiences.
A resource library with downloadable material to make life even easier with your device. All materials are made exclusively for Oticon Medical Friends members.
Direct messaging. Talk directly and privately with other Oticon Medical Friends community members as well as Oticon Medical employees.
A first look at new products and accessories. Find out first what we are working on and offer suggestions for what you’d like us to develop.
Coming soon: Exclusive offers and contests for members.
Groups and more in Oticon Medical Friends
Within the community are different groups designed for new wearers, experienced Ponto users, and caregivers. We encourage you to join as many as you’d like! The following are your current options:
Daily Life
New Ponto Users
Active Living
Experienced Ponto Users
Tips and Tricks
Kids with Ponto
Music
Coming soon: Advocacy
US Insurance
We also have a growing Library of content to help maximize your experience and enjoyment of life with a Ponto BAHS and an area where we encourage you to make Suggestions, which we will use to continue expanding and developing Oticon Medical Friends. We are just getting started, so the sooner you join, the more influence you can have on making this community the best resource it can be!
How do I join Oticon Medical Friends?
If you are currently using a Ponto or you are a parent or caregiver of a Ponto wearer, Oticon Medical Friends is for you! To join, simply click this link to Oticon Medical Friends, and when directed enter the serial number for your or your loved one’s device. Whether you are a new member of the Oticon Medical extended family or a seasoned advocate, Oticon Medical Friends is the place for you.
Last week, we premiered Part 2 of a new Ponto 4 video story from Lucy Brown. In Part 2, Lucy and her mother, Georgene, share even more reasons why they’re glad Lucy upgraded her bone anchored hearing system!
Lucy first tried out Ponto 4 during a visit to Nashville, where she had the opportunity to wear it in some pretty loud and crowded environments. In this video, Georgene shares: “Yesterday, we sure put Ponto 4 to the test.”
Did it pass? Watch and find out!
Tune in next week for the third and final installment of Lucy’s Ponto 4 user story.
Ready to upgrade your processor? Click to learn how!
We’re excited to premiere a new Ponto 4 video story from Miss Lucy Brown! Lucy was a Ponto 3 wearer, but when Ponto 4 became available, she upgraded. Now, she shares what she thinks about life with Ponto 4 and all the ways it’s helping her live her best life.
What are three big reasons Lucy loves her Ponto 4? We’ll let her tell you in her own words.
Did you know Lucy’s an accomplished gymnast? Take a look at her impressive moves! Mom Georgene joins in to ask what else Lucy likes about her Ponto 4.
Find out what else Lucy and Georgene think about Ponto 4 in Part 2… coming soon!
Melissa Tumblin, founder of Ear Community and Oticon Medical Ambassador, originally shared this great list of mobile apps for individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing. We are resharing it with an update that includes apps for Android™ users as well as the original spreadsheet for iPhone® apps.
We thank audiologist Tina Childress, who is also hard of hearing, for compiling the original spreadsheet. Thanks also goes out to Kevin Martin, editor at Joy of Android, for sharing the article on Android apps.
iPhone apps for the hard of hearing
To view the spreadsheet, click below. Here are a few pointers to help you navigate through this available information:
Start on the “Welcome” tab to understand how the apps are chosen and categorized
Click through each tab of the spreadsheet to see the list of apps for that category
To find out more about an app, click on the cell with the app’s hyperlink. You’ll then have the option to “go to link;” click the link
Clicking the link will take you to the application’s information page on iTunes.com. Here, you can see screenshots of the app, read more about it and even view in iTunes where you can download the application. You can also search for the app in the App Store and download it directly to your phone
Click on the image above or here to see the full spreadsheet.
As you may or may not know, Oticon Medical is part of a much larger global organization: the Demant Group. Beyond bone anchored hearing systems, Demant as a whole provides end-to-end hearing healthcare, from diagnostic equipment – used to identify hearing loss in the first place – to a host of treatment and supportive technology.
More than a century of experience in hearing health
For more than 115 years, the Demant Group of hearing and technology companies have helped people with hearing loss enjoy more of what life has to offer: music, the voices of children and grandchildren, and natural sounds like birds singing.
It all started when Demant began importing hearing aids into the Danish town of Odense more than 100 years ago. The import business transitioned over time into production of Demant’s own hearing aids. Even further down the line, Demant expanded into hearing care, diagnostics, hearing implants, audio solutions, and headsets. And the corporation continues adding to its core competencies, with exciting new technological advances and hearing health-related offerings planned for the future.
End-to-end hearing healthcare
Today, Demant is one of the world’s leading – and largest – hearing healthcare companies in the world, offering the broadest selection of treatment for people living with hearing loss. Besides Oticon Medical, the businesses under the Demant umbrella include, but are not limited to, the following:
Hearing aid brands Oticon, Inc. and Philips HearLink
Diagnostic companies Interacoustics and MAICO
Assistive sound field system provider Frontrow
The purpose of the entire business and its employees remains the same across the various units: life-changing hearing health.
With that in mind, we encourage you to take a moment to reflect on all the sounds around you and consider how important they are to your daily life. Those without hearing challenges take sound for granted as they carry on with their routines. But almost 500 million people in the world – more than the population of the United States – live with some level of hearing loss. Like all the companies that make up the Demant Group, Oticon Medical is proud to offer the finest hearing technology to everyone who needs it around the globe.
Demant is seeking to highlight the importance of hearing health and keeping sound in your life with the launch of this new corporate video, I am sound. We hope you enjoy it!
As we shared in Part 1 of Nancy Smith Oberman’s upgrade story, she had her concerns about moving to a bilateral Ponto 4 bone anchored hearing system from her Ponto 3 SuperPowers. The following post traces her journey from deciding to upgrade through her life with Ponto 4, which she originally shared via a series of Facebook posts.*
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Decision made – Nancy chooses Ponto 4
I authorized my audiologist to order my right, steel-gray Ponto 4, and will order the left in January. I’m still absolutely amazed by how well the Ponto 4s work for me. I’m very lucky that I’ve been able to trial them in just about every situation I experience on a daily basis. I was not very positive they would work for me, but as I tell people all the time — louder does not equal good hearing.
I think the thing I’m most impressed with is the fact that I can hear behind me, at least when someone is speaking to me. I don’t necessarily have to face the speaker, which has been a blessing. I’m also quite surprised I don’t get feedback, because I’m pretty sure they are set at the ceiling. Sometimes I will turn them up a tad — my left cochlea is not as good as the right, which is why I’ve always boosted the Pontos with a traditional hearing aid, which gives me the needed extra amplification on the left.
I love that I can control my settings with my Apple® watch! With Ponto 4, I’m experiencing sound that seems even more natural and with less vibration, if that makes sense.
I’m just as happy as I can be… as are my staff! I find that only I can hear what I’m listening to now and so am enjoying taking my phone calls via Bluetooth® anywhere. Who would have thought?
Follow-up after getting Ponto 4 confirms better hearing
Just left my audiologist’s office to pick up one new Ponto (second will be procured in January). As I’m getting ready this morning, he shoots me an email reminding me to bring my SuperPowers to the appointment. He wants to test me with both, to compare. Actually, I was looking forward to doing just that; cannot deny I’ve had a twinge or two over the last month, thinking I may very well have convinced myself the Ponto 4 was better because it was newer and had that direct connect Bluetooth.
We go into the sound booth and start with the Ponto 4s. After the tone thing, he does the speech recognition, where I have to repeat sentences that are spoken with increasing background noise and voices. I thought I did okay, so great! Next, we move to the SuperPowers. No change in program; exactly what I’d used for the last two-and-a-half years. What did I think? Yep, the SuperPowers were going to work better than the 4s, which were much quieter… sigh.
When we finished, my audiologist was grinning. “Well,” I asked, “was I wrong in thinking I heard better with the 4s… kinda bummed?”
“Nope,” he said. “You actually understood speech better with the 4s!” With 1-3 being normal speech recognition (1 being better than 3), I hit at 1.6 with the Ponto 4s. With the Ponto3 SuperPowers, I hit at 2.8. Yay, I was correct — I really do hear better with the 4s!
Advice to Ponto wearers considering an upgrade
My advice to others considering whether to upgrade to a Ponto 4 from their SuperPower device is that you have got to give a trial more than five minutes, or even five hours or an entire day! I sat in a noisy restaurant with friends the other day and didn’t miss any of the conversation even with all the clanking of dishes, crying children, other conversations, etc. While you might not experience a big “a-ha” moment of noticeable hearing improvement, don’t be discouraged. The changes are so subtle (which I think is awesome, actually) that it may take your brain a day or two to catch up to the marked improvement. This is as close to normal hearing as I can remember all those years ago, before the onset of my hearing loss.
I think Oticon Medical has hit this out of the park!
Find a clinic
Click the button if you want to learn more about our Ponto bone anchored hearing systems or arrange a trial.
*NOTE: Originally shared via a series of Facebook posts with permission.
Nancy Smith Oberman had her concerns about upgrading to a bilateral Ponto™ 4 bone anchored hearing system from her Ponto 3 SuperPowers. After all, her SuperPower devices worked great, plus with her profound level of hearing loss, she was doubtful that a non-SP device could help her hear as well as she needed. The following traces her journey from curious but cautious to official Ponto 4 convert.*
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To upgrade or not to upgrade? That was my question
So, unfortunately, I have to add a hearing aid back into the mix. Not sure what’s going on — my hearing hasn’t changed much from my last audiogram even though it’s a little worse, but not enough (at least so my audiologist says) to make a big difference. I’m surmising my brain is getting older and I’m getting crankier, and just a little more tired of working so damn hard to hear people who refuse to speak up. Wonder how everything will work when Ponto 4 Super-Powers (when they come out) are added. Gotta love technology!
I want to trial the Ponto 4 and am trying to get the Ponto 4 demo now. I’m kind of afraid that my hearing loss is too great for non-SuperPower devices, but my audiologist knows I’ll only be satisfied once I am certain one way or another.
First step: trialing Ponto 4
I’m scheduled to get bilateral Ponto 4s programmed for trial Wednesday. In the meantime, I love teaching people! I’m working with the company that set up our phone system to come up with a solution to resolve my difficulty with phone usage. I had quite the conversation explaining the bone anchored hearing system and the Bluetooth® direct connection capabilities of the new Ponto 4. The person I spoke to was fascinated, to say the least! I consider it a win-win: I’ve educated more people about hearing loss and the technology to aid those of us who have it, plus I resolved my phone issue.
My Ponto 4 trial experience
I picked up two Ponto 4s Wednesday for trial. First off, I am amazed at how well they pick up speech, even for someone who has as great a loss as mine (I’m programmed to the ceiling with my Ponto 3 SuperPower devices). There is definitely a noticeable difference between the two sound platforms, with the (Oticon Opn™) open platform seriously a marked improvement.
Surprisingly, since these are programmed to the ceiling, I’ve had no feedback to speak of. Besides clearer, crisper speech, I hear as well as I do with the SuperPower, which I currently wear along with a regular hearing aid. I’ve played a little with wearing them without my hearing aid, and found that I still have the clear speech, but can’t hear much of anything else (e.g., background noise), which gives me a feeling that my ears are stopped up. Didn’t go a long time, since I was at work teaching, and was a tad nervous I would struggle hearing my students. But the few conversations I had with my coworkers outside the classroom were normal. I didn’t struggle to hear them even with students milling about or being loud while on the mats.
Hopefully, I’ll be braver next week and teach the whole day with just the bilateral Ponto 4 and without my hearing aid. Got to give them enough time to really test their performance.
Pleasantly surprised by Ponto 4
The Ponto 4s are so small and lightweight that it feels as if they aren’t even attached. I do miss the ability to mute from the processor itself but using the Oticon ON™ app is no different than using the app with my hearing aid. The direct Bluetooth is absolutely wonderful, except I can only use it in private. As with the streamer, everyone else around me can hear sounds traveling through the processors. At least my coworkers are used to me being in my office with my door closed.
I will be trialing the Ponto 4s for at least a month, so I can test them in all aspects of my life and hearing situations. So far, even though there was no initial “ah-ha” moment like I experienced with the Ponto 3 SuperPower, I am certainly impressed! I sure thought they wouldn’t work for me. I teach adults hands-on activities as well as in classrooms, and it’s quite busy and loud. Surprisingly, Ponto 4 seems to have a marked ability to mute that noise when I’m engaged in conversation.
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Will Nancy decide to take the plunge and upgrade to Ponto 4? Find out in our next post!
Find a clinic
Click the button if you want to learn more about our Ponto bone anchored hearing systems or arrange a trial.
*NOTE: Originally shared via a series of Facebook posts with permission.
Over the weekend of October 11-13, we hosted 40+ attendees — including Ponto wearers and their families — for our annual New Advocates Meeting, which was held at Oticon Medical’s headquarters in Somerset, NJ. A few long-time Ambassadors, including Angela and Sarah Zabel and Kevin Hotaling, also attended in order to share their experiences and provide coaching and inspiration.
Friday night inspiration
We kicked the weekend off with a welcome reception and dinner held at the Bridgewater Marriott where attendees were staying for the weekend. While serving dessert, we conducted a Share Your Story activity during which everyone took a few minutes to introduce themselves and talk about their experiences with hearing loss and journeys to better hearing with Ponto bone anchored hearing systems.
Friday night dinner and story sharing
A busy Saturday schedule
Bright and early Saturday morning, we kicked of a full day of educational panels on topics ranging from Ponto 4: Introduction and Design to New Advances in Bone Anchored Hearing Procedure, all conducted by various Oticon Medical staffers and audiology professionals. Hands-on workshops included how to use Canva to enhance social media posts and how to add visual effects and edit self-made videos. We also introduced Oticon Medical Friends, our exciting new community portal through which wearers will be able to stay in closer contact with our company and one another. Meanwhile, our child wearers and their siblings were kept entertained by Mad Science of West New Jersey and The Lizard Guy and his live animal exhibits.
Mad Science presentation
Saturday night, we took a fun trip together on the Sparkling NYC Skyline Dinner Cruise. Attendees and staff enjoyed a delicious buffet dinner and a couple of loops around New York City before reaching the main attraction — a close-up view of the Statue of Liberty. There was also plenty of time for dancing and fun on-board.
New York skyline by boat
Statue of Liberty
Sunday wrap-up
Sunday morning, we held a panel discussion on Technology and Access, which included a lively Q&A about insurance-related topics. Then Melissa Tumblin and her daughter Aly presented key Oticon Medical staff members with Ear Community Microtia and Atresia Awareness Awards in recognition of all they’ve done to improve the lives of people with these conditions. The weekend concluded with a farewell luncheon, and then everyone headed back home with the knowledge and motivation to be the best possible advocates on behalf of those with hearing challenges.
Aly & Melissa with Pres. John Sparacio
We would like to thank all of our attendees and Ambassadors for sharing their stories and further developing a supportive, tightly connected community!
Click to learn more about Ponto bone anchored hearing systems, including Ponto 4, our smallest and first processor with direct wireless streaming and all the benefits of Oticon’s proven Opn™ technology.
“No other hearing aid or osseo-integrated device company can match the processing available in the Ponto 4.”
Tory Burns, a Clinical Representative with Oticon Medical, had an acoustic neuroma removed when he was 15, leaving him with single-sided deafness (SSD). He describes what led him to finally treat his hearing loss with the Ponto bone anchored hearing system (BAHS) and his thoughts on the Ponto 4 after upgrading from the Ponto 3 SP.
Search for the right SSD treatment leads to a career with Oticon Medical
I completely lost the hearing in my left ear by the time I was 18. My good ear is normal. I cannot tell which direction sounds are coming from and I have significant difficulty hearing in background noise. I have had to pre-plan before going out and assertively choose the seating that most appropriately fit my hearing loss (since my SSD is on the left, I would try to avoid having people sit or walk on my left side). I tried several CROS-type solutions, and all were too noisy for me to wear for any length of time.
I worked for Oticon, Inc. for four years, choosing this particular company because of its unique innovations and forward-looking technology. I then moved over to Oticon Medical because it was an opportunity to work with people struggling with the same hearing loss that I had. I did not get a Ponto until six months later. I did not specifically intend to do this but since I saw how easy the surgery was, it quickly became a no-brainer — I had to try it. I was a new dad at the time and wanted to make sure I was giving myself every opportunity to be a part of my daughter’s life.
I definitely feel I have an insider’s perspective. I can relate to and empathize with difficulties that a person with SSD has that may not be obvious, even to them. I can also offer some assurance that having a Ponto generally won’t interfere with any of their activities no matter how physically demanding.
Ponto 4 and the joys of wireless streaming
I wore my previous Ponto devices situationally. When I was in noise, I would have to turn it up all the way. Sometimes, I only heard a jumble of sounds, and while still helpful, I wanted more.
Now I wake up every day and put my Ponto 4 on (never did that before, ever). It is like I am not even wearing anything! The sound quality is three-dimensional and speech “pops” out of the noise. I can hear speech in all directions on my left side. It is remarkable — after the start-up tone, you can hear the sounds all jumbled and amplified, but within a second or two, everything gets organized and cleaned up.
Also, I have never successfully streamed with any previous generation of Ponto. I could only hear audio if I plugged up my good ear, which in my opinion, defeats the purpose. With the Ponto 4, I’ve streamed sportscasts and phone calls while out in the yard working, walking down a busy road, and even in my car.
The sound streaming from my phone is excellent — clearer than from any other sound processor I have worn. I streamed for two hours one day while working outside with power tools and didn’t miss a word from the golf broadcast I was listening to.
Older technology made sounds seem two-dimensional — like a wall of sound coming at me all at once. The soundscape around me is three-dimensional with Ponto 4. Voices in many listening situations seem to have their own place in space.
Clear speech with Ponto 4 even in noise
Voices are clear, even in noise. I have plenty of headroom if I want it louder, and I would highly recommend Ponto 4 to SSD patients who are considering which Ponto to get. The device does not need as much volume to compensate for hearing because the speech information is what the device is emphasizing.
Ponto 4 is also smaller, which is a big part of my willingness to wear it more often. It supports my lifestyle, which includes running. I run a lot and wear my Ponto 4 for awareness on the street and trails. Because the Ponto 4 is very water-resistant, I don’t hesitate to wear it while I am active and on land. I’m also a dad with two kids so all of my other “recreation” opportunities are not mine. Nevertheless, I benefit from wearing my Ponto everywhere.
When I was not wearing a Ponto, I would have to really think and analyze my situation before, during, and after to ensure the best outcomes. It felt like a lot of work day in and day out. When I wear my Ponto 4, I don’t have to lean in to the conversation with my good ear or choose which seat to sit in so that everyone is on my “good side”. It used to be that if two people were talking to me with one on my left side and one on the right, I would have to turn slightly to my good (right) side to hear both equally. I never have to do that with my Ponto 4. In all, I have much more natural interactions with people on a daily basis. I feel better when I wear my device than when I don’t because it is less stressful when it is on.
It took getting the Ponto to really find out how much I had been compensating for my hearing loss. I realized how much work I was putting in daily and how much I was avoiding because of my hearing difficulties. I also realized how much I was missing that I wasn’t aware of during the 20+ years I did nothing. The new OPN™ technology is a game-changer. No other hearing aid or osseo-integrated device company can match the processing available in the Ponto 4.
My advice to anyone considering the Ponto 4? Try it out for yourself — what do you have to lose?
Find a clinic
Click the button if you want to learn more about our Ponto bone anchored hearing systems or arrange a trial.
I’m scheduled to get bilateral Ponto 4s programmed for trial Wednesday. In the meantime, I love teaching people! I’m working with the company that set up our phone system to come up with a solution to resolve my difficulty with phone usage. I had quite the conversation explaining the bone anchored hearing system and the Bluetooth® direct connection capabilities of the new Ponto 4. The person I spoke to was fascinated, to say the least! I consider it a win-win: I’ve educated more people about hearing loss and the technology to aid those of us who have it, plus I resolved my phone issue.
The Ponto 4s are so small and lightweight that it feels as if they aren’t even attached. I do miss the ability to mute from the processor itself but using the Oticon ON™ app is no different than using the app with my hearing aid. The direct Bluetooth is absolutely wonderful, except I can only use it in private. As with the streamer, everyone else around me can hear sounds traveling through the processors. At least my coworkers are used to me being in my office with my door closed.
I completely lost the hearing in my left ear by the time I was 18. My good ear is normal. I cannot tell which direction sounds are coming from and I have significant difficulty hearing in background noise. I have had to pre-plan before going out and assertively choose the seating that most appropriately fit my hearing loss (since my SSD is on the left, I would try to avoid having people sit or walk on my left side). I tried several CROS-type solutions, and all were too noisy for me to wear for any length of time.
