Flagstaff Featured Business: Benchmark Hearing Centre
(as published in the March 6 edition of The Community Press)
The Flagstaff Region Featured Business is a monthly newspaper and web feature presented in partnership by Flagstaff County and The Community Press.
Benchmark Hearing Centre Ltd.
5124 50 St., Daysland
780-374-3748
Monday to Friday – 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
But shortly after starting the job in 2006, Layden longed to do more to help the clinic’s clientele.
“It was interesting because people would come in and I could only help them so much,” recalls the Daysland product who was raised in Camrose and parts of B.C.
“As a receptionist, you can’t always do hearing aid adjustments, you can’t do hearing testing. I found if I could help people a little bit more, that would fulfill my day a little bit better.”
And so, Layden enrolled in the Hearing Aid Practitioner Program in 2007. Two years later, she graduated from the program with honours and began splitting her time as a fully licensed hearing aid practitioner at clinics in Red Deer and Stettler.
Layden honed her craft at those locations for three years, before venturing out on her own.
In 2012, she opened Benchmark Hearing Centre in her hometown of Daysland.
“I was working between those areas (Red Deer and Stettler) at the time and I just thought Daysland would be a perfect spot to open,” she recalls. “Flagstaff County is really warm, it’s welcoming and there’s lots of opportunity here for small businesses. I wish more of them would come out and open, and bring some services to these areas. If we can save people from having to drive half an hour to an hour every time they need something to do with their hearing aids, I think we can help a lot of people.”
Layden, a member in good standing with CHIPS (Canadian Hearing Instrument Society) and CHAPA (College of Hearing Aid Practitioners of Alberta), has since added a second location in Stettler.
Among the lengthy list of services she offers:
•Comprehensive diagnostic audiological evaluations and hearing tests for adults;
•Rehabilitation services for hearing loss;
•Counselling for hearing loss and Tinnitus;
•Full line of hearing aids, specializing in digital hearing aid technology including assistive listening devices;
•Computerized hearing aid analysis (Real Ear Measurement);
•Hearing aid repair services;
•Hearing aid cleaning services;
•Hearing aid accessories including premium batteries;
•Custom earmolds for hearing aids, iPods and MP3s;
•Water protection earplugs;
•Noise protection for musicians and sportsmen.
Benchmark Hearing, which is wheelchair accessible, is a medically focused practice. As part of that commitment, Layden makes doctor referrals if required.
“If there’s any medical issue – so bleeding in the ear or if they’re feeling really plugged up in their sinuses – we have tests here that can tell us what’s going on,” she explains. “Then we refer them back to their GP (general practitioner) and they can send them on to wherever they need to be.”
Layden, certified through the NBC-HIS (National Board Certification for Hearing Instrument Sciences), also offers in-home appointments.
“If need be, we’ll do hearing services wherever we’re called,” she adds. “Flagstaff County is quite big, so if someone calls us from Killam or Sedgewick, we’re more than happy to go because not everyone can get everywhere they need to be for their services.”
Benchmark Hearing also accommodates third-party billing, which includes the Workers Compensation Board, Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Alberta Aids to Daily Living program.
“In Alberta, we have provincial hearing aid coverage, which is fantastic,” Layden notes. “Every senior gets coverage for hearing aids every five years.”
Layden’s goal is to help improve the hearing of as many people as possible.
That’s reflected in Benchmark Hearing’s simple and straightforward motto: This year, experience better hearing.
“We think it’s important to try to improve your hearing if at all possible and if we can help you do that, that’s great,” Layden explains.
“Usually it’s the family that pushes somebody to come in and get their hearing tested and then they’re surprised at how often they feel some improvement with hearing aids, and we’re happy to help with that.”
The big beige hearing aids of yesteryear are “pretty much obsolete,” adds Layden.
“The new hearing aid technology is so much smaller, the chips are so much smaller, we’re able to put Bluetooth in them so they connect with your smartphone directly. There’s just so many new, cool features.”
For more information on Benchmark Hearing Centre, visit www.benchmarkhearingcentre.ca.
As published in the March 6 edition of The Community Press – on newsstands today. Never miss an issue, become a SUBSCRIBER today!
The Flagstaff Region Featured Business is a monthly newspaper and web feature presented in partnership by Flagstaff County and The Community Press. For more information, contact Jenalee Blackhurst, Economic Development Coordinator, at 780-384-4152.
