Fitted to a T, so no one notices
With a tailored hearing solution, such as the Phonak Infinio Sphere, wearers feel more comfortable and regain their confidence to join in conversations.
When Mrs Sarah Tan noticed her hearing was declining, her concerns went beyond the idea of wearing hearing aids.
“I felt paiseh if people noticed,” says the 68-year-old retiree. She simply assumed hearing aids were big and obvious – and the thought of others noticing kept her from getting help.
It was her son, Mr Daniel Tan, who first noticed the signs: the television volume creeping up, the frequent requests for family members to repeat themselves. A hearing assessment confirmed what he suspected – his mother had mild-to-moderate hearing loss.
But convincing her to do something about it was another matter.
“I didn’t want to wear them,” Mrs Tan admits. “I thought hearing aids were big and obvious.”
Ms Cheryl Wong, an audiologist at 20dB Hearing Singapore, says: “Hearing loss is rarely about volume – it’s about clarity. Ignoring early signs, like struggling to hear in a noisy restaurant, often leads to social withdrawal, which is far more damaging to health than the device itself.”
Built for comfort
Mrs Tan’s misconceptions were cleared when the family visited 20dB Hearing for a consultation. As a comprehensive hearing care provider, 20dB Hearing offers a wide range of professional services, including detailed hearing assessments, personalised fittings, cochlear implant consultations and tinnitus management. It also offers advanced hearing technologies from Switzerland and Canada.
Mrs Tan was fitted with the Swiss-made Phonak Infinio Sphere, which uses built-in artificial intelligence to help separate speech from background noise. The sleek, rechargeable design also sits neatly behind the ear.
“When I saw how small it was, I felt relieved,” Mrs Tan says. “It was not what I imagined hearing aids to look like.”
Ms Wong explains that while the technology is advanced, the human element of care is what ensures long-term success.
“We believe the fitting is just the start of a lifelong partnership. For those who find travel difficult, our audiologists conduct home visits to ensure everything is working perfectly in their familiar environment. We can even perform remote fine-tuning while the patient relaxes at home,” Ms Wong says.
The small device has had a huge impact not just on Mrs Tan, but also her family. Her son notes: “Now, my mum responds immediately in conversations. She laughs at the right moments again.”
His mother adds: “I don’t need to keep asking people to repeat themselves any more. And because the device is so small, I don’t feel self-conscious wearing it.
“I can hear my children clearly again. That’s what matters most.”
*This article is officially published on The Straits Times newspaper (15 April 2026).
