A Warm Welcome Awaits You

The first thing you notice as you enter our Exeter Hearing Centre is the aromal of freshly brewed coffee and the friendly welcome. Clients who have been with us a long time think nothing of popping in for a chat if they're passing, and we're always glad to see them. It's one of the nice things about being a long-established independent practice! We get to know our clients as people, not numbers.

Enjoy a Window on the Past…

Whilst you are waiting for your appointment and enjoying your freshly-brewed coffee, you may have time to look at our wonderful archive photographs of Exeter and our display cabinet of hearing technology through the ages. The photographs are all from the Isca Collection (Telephone: 01392 677614), and show Broom Reid & Harris on Queen Street around 1915 right up until the move into the Guildhall Shopping Centre in the late 1970s. You can read more about our history here.

Our display cabinet features hearing technology from before the 1920s, with some of the old ear trumpets, through table top hearing aids, to body worn hearing aids, right up until in the ear models from around twenty years ago. It's always sparking off discussions, either because someone remembers someone who used to wear something similar or just at the ingenuity of how people in the past used to solve cosmetic and practical issues.

Built for Comfort and Accuracy

When we set about designing our current Practice Premises in Exeter we commissioned IAC, the world's leading provider of rooms for audiology examination and audiometric research. We asked them to build us two bespoke rooms that would represent the highest standards in private hearing care.

The brief was:

• The rooms must bring the ambient noise levels down below 35dB(A) to ensure accuracy of testing.
• The rooms must be spacious enough to comfortably sit the Hearing Care Professional, the client and one or two accompanying adults.
• They must be air-conditioned for comfort, but the air conditioning must not interfere with the testing.

And we are extremely pleased with the results. You step inside the rooms, close the doors and the background noise immediately drops to a satisfying hush. Turn the air conditioning on, and you don't hear it: you simply appreciate the change in temperature. That's because the air conditioning units have special acoustic silencers on them.

When we were investigating different ways we could build our Consulting Rooms, we looked at the possibility of sound booths, which some practices use to reduce ambient noise levels. But we felt that this would undermine our philosophy of client comfort, because it would mean having to put them in an enclosed space, separated from the the friend or family member that accompanied them, which some people may find distressing.

By contrast, our own Consulting Rooms are much more friendly and welcoming, because everyone feels involved in the consulting process. And they have gone down extremely well with our clients, as well as visiting professionals who appreciate the high standards we have invested in.

Advanced Facilities for Getting it Right

Our two consulting rooms are each equipped with MedRx Audiological Diagnostic & Fitting Systems. This system provides our Hearing Care Professionals with an array of tools to help them get the most out of your hearing.

It starts with an accurate assessment of your hearing, from the quietest sounds you can just hear. To your ability to discriminate speech. To a photograph of the inside of your ear. To testing the performance of your eardrum.

Then, should you benefit from the fitting of a hearing system, we have the benefits of Live Speech Mapping. This allows us to visualise the sound that's entering your ears through the hearing system so we can verify it precisely tuned to the needs of your hearing.

We have noticed recently that some of the national chains have begun to borrow Live Speech Mapping (Visual Speech Mapping) systems for their open days, which they have been using as a marketing tool. We feel it is worth pointing out that we have two permanently installed systems, and have been using Live Speech Mapping since 2003 as an important tool in our fitting process.

Learn more about some of the technology we use.

Widex Scanning Facilities



We are now pleased to be able to provide our clients with Impression Scanning facilities for earmoulds and Widex ITE/ITC/CIC in the ear hearing aids. This amazing piece of kit uses a laser to scan around 6,000 points on a silicon impression of your ear to build a three dimension computer model of the shape of your ear. This is then sent via the Internet straight into the production line of Widex's London production facilities, dramatically reducing turnaround times and increasing accuracy.



All Your Accessories and Hearing Care Supplies

What's nice about having a Hearing Centre right in the heart of Exeter is that it's so easy to pop in and pick up batteries when you need them, or ask for a demonstration on using a telephone with an amplifier, or get a hearing aid cleaned and checked. We permanently stock a full range of accessories, hearing care supplies and assistive listening devices and if we don't have something you are looking for it's simply a matter of ordering it in for you.

Conveniently Located for Parking & Shopping

And of course, being in the Guildhall Shopping Centre in Exeter means we're conveniently located for Car Parking (which is now pay-on-foot, meaning you no longer have to guess how long you're going to spend in Exeter), yet discreetly tucked away (like our hearing solutions!) on the Higher Market Gallery. We're right opposite the rear entrance to Marks & Spencer and almost above W.H.Smith.

Click here for details on How to Find Us

Wheelchair Access



Our Exeter Centre is geared up for wheelchairs. Access to the Higher Market Gallery with a wheelchair is via the lift in Marks & Spencer. But don't forget, we also offer Home Visits.

And the Home of Mr Broom…

And how could we forget that our Exeter Centre is the home of Mr Broom, who stands outside the Centre offering to do a 30 second self-hearing check. To find out more visit his own website at www.MrBroom.co.uk.