Survey overview
EuroTrak Switzerland 2015 was designed and conducted by Anovum on behalf of HSM Switzerland as a follow-up to the 2012 study. The survey included a representative screening sample of 14,570 people and detailed interviews with 1,301 people with self-reported hearing loss, comprising 619 hearing aid owners and 682 non-owners.
Hearing loss and adoption
In EuroTrak Switzerland 2015, 8.0% of the total population reported hearing loss, compared with 8.8% in 2012. Among adults aged 18 and over, prevalence was 9.5%, down from 10.5% in 2012.
Hearing aid adoption increased to 41.4% of people with self-reported hearing loss, compared with 38.8% in 2012. Among adults with hearing loss, adoption reached 41.9%. Among hearing aid owners, 72% had binaural treatment.
Route to hearing care
35% of respondents had undergone a hearing test within the previous five years, compared with 39% in 2012. Family doctors were the most common providers of hearing tests.
Among people with self-reported hearing loss, 74% had discussed their hearing loss with an ENT doctor and/or family doctor, while 48% were recommended hearing aids by one of these professionals.
GPs frequently acted as a referral point: 65% of GP consultations resulted in referral to an ENT, while 17% resulted in a recommendation for no further action. Among ENT consultations, 41% resulted in referral to an audiologist and 36% in no further action.
Hearing aid use and satisfaction
Hearing aids were worn for an average of 9 hours per day, up from 8.3 hours in 2012. 34% of currently owned hearing aids had been acquired within the previous two years, and the average age of devices was 3.8 years.
Overall, 81% of hearing aid owners were satisfied with their devices, compared with 84% in 2012. 80% said their hearing aids worked as expected or better.
Users reported positive effects particularly in communication, participation in group activities and sense of safety. 99% said their hearing aids improved their quality of life at least sometimes.
Reimbursement and awareness
81% of hearing aid owners received full or partial third-party reimbursement: 7% had their hearing aids fully covered and 74% received partial reimbursement.
Among non-owners, 46% believed that a third party would cover at least some of the cost, while 39% did not know and 15% believed there would be no reimbursement.
Barriers to adoption
Among non-owners, the main reasons for not using hearing aids included believing they could still hear well enough, concerns that hearing aids do not work well in noisy situations, and feeling that hearing loss was not severe enough.
11% of non-owners intended to obtain a hearing aid within the following year, up from 7% in 2012. Worsening hearing loss, advice from ENT specialists and encouragement from a spouse were among the most important potential influences on adoption.
Overall, EuroTrak Switzerland 2015 shows increasing hearing aid adoption and greater daily use, alongside high satisfaction and strong reported quality-of-life benefits. Perceived need and concerns about hearing aid performance remained important barriers among non-owners.
Source: Anovum – EuroTrak Switzerland 2015.
