UK audiology company Cleartone Hearing is to embark on a local expansion programme following the recent opening of its Malta practice, the company’s Michael Wall told The Times Business.
Cleartone Hearing Malta began offering its services from six clinics last November and is looking to add four more to its network by July. Mr Wall said the company was also seeking candidates with suitable backgrounds willing to train and work with Cleartone Malta’s team.
Mr Wall said Cleartone was able to offer the “most up to date digital hearing aid technology in Malta and Gozo at highly discounted prices because of our buying power with the manufacturers”.
Under a launch initiative, Cleartone is offering audiometric testing, videotoscopy, and free consultations through its local clinic network. More clinics will come on board according to customer response and demand in particular areas, Mr Wall said.
The company has been operating in the hearing aid industry in the UK and Ireland since 1994. Mr Wall, a hearing aid audiologist, had previously visited the islands several times on holiday and recently began thinking about where he would like to retire.
“Malta seems to have ticked all the right boxes for me: the people, the culture, the fact that it is an English-speaking country – and, of course, the weather,” Mr Wall said. “Cleartone Hearing Malta was born with the help of my accountant Stefan Psaila: I ran my ideas by him and he basically did everything else for me, turning Cleartone Hearing Malta into a reality. I could not have done it without him. His knowledge and expertise were inspirational.”
The company’s product portfolio is the result of €60 million in annual research and development carried out by manufacturers into hearing aid technology. Its latest products include instruments which address wearers’ main concern – hearing comfortably in noisy environments.
Mr Wall explained how people’s hearing deteriorated naturally with age. At 20, young people had already lost the ability to perceive some of the sounds they did as infants. By age 30 or 40, there is significant hearing loss. More than half of over-80s lose considerable hearing ability.
“Unfortunately people often deny the extent of their hearing problems,” Mr Wall pointed out. “On average, people tend to wait five to seven years between first experiencing hearing loss and actually seeking advice, which affects their communication and ultimately their quality of life over time. There really is no need to suffer unnecessarily with invisible hearing solutions and ground-breaking technology that will set sufferers back onto the path of better hearing”.