Your child’s hearing aid is made up of the following components:
(their hearing aid may look different to the one shown, but the components will be similar)

A red marker indicates the right hearing aid, a blue marker indicates the left hearing aid. Your Audiologist will signpost to these markers on your child’s hearing aids, as the location of the markers varies between hearing aid models.

It is important to get the earmould into the ear properly, or it may be uncomfortable or emit a whistling noise. The Audiologist will demonstrate how to do this and provide time to practice with you during the appointment. However, it will likely take additional practice at home before you are an expert.

If the hearing aid is whistling, ensure it is fully inserted (as illustrated in the final image below). It may need one extra push (try pulling down on the ear lobe to help).

Parents have found the following hearing aids bands helpful for keeping hearing aids on their children.

Some parents have made their own using material, Alice Bands and small hair ties. The hair ties act as loops on the band to hold the hearing aids in place.

Other families have purchased them online from Etsy. You may find other retailers available online.

You may also want to use double-sided tape, which we provide. This can help adhere the hearing aid to the skin behind the ear.

You will need:

Your child’s hearing aids may have been fitted with a ‘tamperproof’ battery compartment, which is designed to ensure batteries stay out of reach from children. This is a requirement for all children under the age of 5, or for children who have a sibling under the age of 5 at home. Here are some examples:

Please note: If your child has a hearing aid/s which does not have a tamper proof door, but you feel this would be beneficial, please contact us urgently for a request for a tamperproof door.

As children move around a lot, it is common for their hearing aids to dislodge from behind their ears. This retention clip can be used to prevent losing their hearing aids. Please note, this clip is not suitable for children between 0–3 years of age.

Batteries

Batteries are supplied free of charge by the NHS, these can be collected when you attend your child’s Audiology appointment or posted home.

To request batteries in the post, please send us an email, which we will aim to respond to within 3 working days.

Please contact us for further information.

Telephone: 020 3456 5115
Email: uclh.enquiry.chad.rntne@nhs.net

Make sure that you

• Don’t leave the battery in a hearing aid that you are not using regularly, as it might damage the aid;
• Keep the batteries clean and dry and away from extreme heat or cold;
• Never throw old batteries into a fire (they may explode);
• Batteries should be recycled. If you do not have local facilities for this, please bring used batteries with you on your next visit to Paediatric Audiology and we will recycle them for you.
• When changing batteries, remember to remove the sticker and to make sure that it has been placed in the battery compartment the right way around (match the ‘+’ on the battery with the ‘+’ on the battery compartment). If the battery compartment does not close, don’t force it - the battery is probably in the wrong way around.

Battery safety Alert

Please read the safety guide (see inside the back cover of this guide) for important information about button (hearing aid) batteries.

Before using your child’s hearing aid for the first time, it is recommended to charge it for 3 hours.

After placing the hearing aid/s in the charger, the indicator light will show the charging state of the battery until the hearing aid is fully charged. When fully charged the indicator light will be solid green.

To turn your child’s hearing aid on manually: Firmly press the lower part of the hearing aid button for 3 seconds until the indicator light blinks green.

To turn your child’s hearing aid off manually: Firmly press the lower part of the hearing aid button for 4 seconds until the indicator light blinks red.

On: Indicator light is solid green.

OFF: Indicator light is solid red.

Please note: If the hearing aid does NOT turn on, place it in the charger.

The hearing aids charge fully within 3 hours; they fast charge the first hour and then the last 2 hours is trickle charge.

The charger can be used as a case; you cannot over charge the hearing aids as they turn off in the charger once fully charged.

Your child’s earmoulds will need replacing from time to time. The time frame for this will depend on several factors, including how quickly your child is growing.

You will know when new earmoulds are required, as they may appear visibly loose in the ear, or the hearing aids may make a ‘whistling’ noise even when inserted correctly.

Should new earmoulds be required, please contact us to arrange an appointment time for ear impressions to be taken.

Telephone: 020 3456 5115
Email: uclh.enquiry.chad.rntne@nhs.net

If the tubing is easily coming out of the earmould then you may simply need to retube the earmould (the instructions for this can be found on a further page in this booklet). The tubing will begin to deteriorate over time, by changing colour and/or losing flexibility, this generally occurs after approximately 6-8 months of use.

On occasion, there may be signs of condensation building up inside the flexible tube. The hearing aid should be blown or puffed with the ‘puffer’ (that you have been provided with) on a regular basis before a blockage of water develops that will prevent sound from entering the ear properly.

Cleaning earmoulds

If your child has two hearing aids (one for each ear), please ensure that you don’t lose track of which earmould is for which ear. The actual hearing aids themselves can be identified by their markers blue (for the left ear) and red (for the right ear ) located on each hearing aid (usually in or on the battery door).

To clean the behind-the-ear section of your hearing aid, wipe it carefully with a soft, dry cloth or tissue. Please take extra care to ensure this part of the hearing aid does not get wet.