First published 07 April 2022

14.2% of adult Australians say that they have a hearing loss. This is one in seven adult Australians. Nearly half of those who say they have a hearing loss use hearing aids, according to the survey AustraliaTrak 2021.

The AustraliaTrak 2021 survey on hearing loss and the use of hearing aids in Australia shows that 14.2% of adult Australians think they have hearing loss. Among all Australians, including those under 18 years of age, 11.8 % say that they have a hearing loss.

The figures are somewhat higher than similar surveys in Europe in recent years, where the average was 10-11% – or around one in ten – of adults reporting that they think they have a hearing loss.

Use of hearing aids

44.7% of those who said they had a hearing loss used hearing aids. This is a bit more than in a similar survey from Australia from 2017, where 41% of those with hearing loss used hearing aids. 64% of those who used hearing aids used two hearing aids (binaural fitting).

94% of the hearing aid owners in the survey declared that their hearing aids improved their quality of life all of the time or some of the time.

Especially communication effectiveness, ability to participate in group activities and relationships at work improved when using hearing aids. Hearing aid users also experienced less fatigue in the evenings and improved quality of sleep.

86% of the working hearing aid owners in the survey stated their hearing aids were useful at work and found that people with hearing aids recognise that hearing aids increase their chances of getting promoted, getting the right job and a higher salary.

76% of all hearing aid owners in the survey said that they should have gotten their hearing aids sooner. The main reason for this was missing out on social life when not using hearing aids.

Hearing tests

39% of the participants in the survey had a hearing test in the last 5 years. Most of the tests were carried out by hearing aid clinicians and family doctors.

Reimbursement

80% of those with hearing aids in Australia had received some kind of 3rd party reimbursement. Among non-owners, only 23% know whether the government or their insurance would pay.

About the survey

The AustraliaTrak 2021 survey was designed and carried out by the Swiss analysis firm Anovum on behalf of Hearing Care Industry Association (HCIA) in Australia and the European Hearing Instrument Manufacturers Association (EHIMA). The survey consisted of around 14,600 interviews.

Source: www.ehima.com