Survey overview
EuroTrak France 2009 was designed and conducted by Anovum on behalf of the European Hearing Instrument Manufacturers Association (EHIMA). The study included a representative screening sample of 15,545 people and detailed interviews with 1,304 people with self-reported hearing loss, comprising 501 hearing aid owners and 803 non-owners.
Hearing loss and adoption
In EuroTrak France 2009, 10.4% of the total population reported hearing loss, rising to 12.7% among adults aged 18 and over.
Hearing aid adoption was 29.8% among people with self-reported hearing loss and 29.3% among adults with hearing loss. Among hearing aid owners, 58% had binaural treatment. Bilateral hearing loss was reported by 71% of hearing aid owners and 61% of non-owners.
Route to hearing care
Among people with self-reported hearing loss, 72% had discussed their hearing loss with an ENT doctor and/or family doctor.
Hearing-care professionals were important in the decision to obtain hearing aids. Among owners, worsening hearing loss, advice from an ENT specialist or audiologist, and encouragement from a spouse, relative, child or friend were among the most important reported influences on obtaining a hearing aid.
Hearing aid use and satisfaction
Hearing aids were worn for an average of 8.3 hours per day. 68% of currently owned hearing aids had been bought in 2007 or later, and their average age was 2.9 years.
Overall, 86% of hearing aid owners were satisfied with their devices. Satisfaction was higher among people who wore their hearing aids for longer each day and among users with more recently purchased devices. Satisfaction with hearing aid dispensers was also high, ranging from 85% to 91% across the measures reported.
Users reported particularly positive effects on communication effectiveness and social life. Remaining challenges included hearing in noisy situations, telephone use and conversations in large groups, as well as value for money and battery life.
Reimbursement and awareness
52% of hearing aid owners received some form of third-party reimbursement.
Among non-owners, there was substantial uncertainty about insurance support: 26% did not know whether insurance would pay, while 31% believed that it would not.
Barriers to adoption
Among non-owners in the top 50% hearing-loss group, the leading barriers were affordability, discomfort and the belief that hearing aids would not restore hearing to normal. In this subgroup, 62% identified affordability as a definite reason, 58% discomfort and 43% the expectation that hearing aids would not restore normal hearing.
Among hearing aid owners, 6% did not use their devices. The main reasons for non-use were believing that hearing aids did not restore hearing to normal, discomfort and poor performance in noisy situations.
10% of non-owners intended to obtain a hearing aid within the following year. For non-owners, worsening hearing loss, ENT advice, hearing aid price and receiving a hearing aid free through insurance were among the strongest potential influences on obtaining one.
Overall, EuroTrak France 2009 shows 29.8% hearing aid adoption, high reported satisfaction among owners and substantial daily use. Affordability, comfort, expectations of hearing-aid performance and uncertainty about financial support remained important barriers among non-owners.
Source: Anovum – EuroTrak France 2009.
