This month we want to spotlight Ida Fellow Anita Erras. Anita will help present the Ida Motivation Tools at four upcoming European Union of Hearing Aid Acousticians (EUHA) technical seminars in Germany. She will join Ida Learning Specialist Ena Nielsen in conducting workshops in Nürnberg (2 March), Lübeck (9 March), Dresden (16 March), and Köln (23 March).
Anita brings over 20 years of practical work experience to the upcoming Ida workshops. She has worked in various private hearing aid dispensers in Germany and currently owns and manages a hearing aid clinic in Weiden, Germany.
Anita has come to realize that using the Ida tools and methods can help contribute to improved customer service and positive patient outcomes. After attending an Ida seminar on communication partners, she returned to Germany and implemented the Ida tools at her private clinic.
“More people are coming to my clinic as opposed to the one across town,” remarks Anita. “The people who work in the competing clinic do not always listen to the patient or attempt to really understand their perspective. They just say ‘wear your hearing aids for three months and everything will be ok’. Adopting patient centered care strategies has helped me provide better customer service and attract more patients to my clinic.”
Using the Ida tools and methods has helped Anita better understand and address patient needs. The Motivation Tools have allowed her to encourage patients to consider the barriers to taking concrete steps to improve their hearing, such as purchasing hearing aids. By openly discussing the barriers to change, Anita has found that it is easier to address patient concerns and motivate patients to take action and use hearing aids.
By using the Ida tools to open constructive discussions with her patients, she has improved patient satisfaction at her clinic. Anita often uses the Ida tools to encourage patients to discuss their thoughts and feelings about their hearing loss. She has found that actively listening to the patient discuss their personal challenges with their hearing helps convey to the patient that their viewpoint is important. This has helped her develop strong bonds of trust with many of her patients. Her patients trust that she is doing everything she can to guide and help them through their personal journey.
Overall, the Ida tools have helped Anita provide better customer service to her patients. She looks forward to sharing her experiences with the Ida tools at the upcoming EUHA seminars in March.