Fine Gael TD for Dun Laoghaire, Mary Mitchell O’Connor, has called for the regulation of hearing aid suppliers. Deputy Mitchell O’Connor was speaking at the Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children today (Thursday), which she chaired.

“Currently hearing aids are advertised on the basis of price, with little reference to the quality of the product or its suitability for the consumer. Often hearing aids are fitted very badly and this causes distress to the patient. Today at the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children, it was stressed that hearing aids available through HSE must be of a high quality, especially for people with a dual disability of hearing and sight loss.

“I understand from the Department of Health that the Irish Society of Hearing Aid Audiologists (ISHAA) is the professional body for Hearing Aid Audiologists and registration with this body requires a minimum qualification of a Foundation Degree in Audiology.

“However I believe we must now consider regulations for private audiologists in the best interests of consumers.”