Audiology

Repair service

We now provide a postal repair and battery service. Patients can request batteries or tubing by phone or email. If your hearing aids are faulty and require repair or replacement you can send them to us by post (we recommend using registered post for this) – we will then repair your hearing aid(s) and send them back to you by registered post.

We have replaced the walk-in hearing aid repair and maintenance service with a booked repair service.
You may have received notification of this by text message. We hope that this change will improve the service for all patients, ensuring there are no excessive waiting times and enhancing infection control processes.

Patients can book repair appointments by telephone or email:

• for repair appointments at Charing Cross call 0203 311 1021
• for repair appointments at St Mary Abbots Hearing Aid Centre call 0203 315 6011
• email address for both sites: audiology.imperial@nhs.net

There will be no change to the service at St. Mary’s Hospital in Paddington as this has always operated as a booked repair service.

• for repair appointments at St Marys Hospital call 020 3312 1015
• email address for St Mary’s site: ichc-tr.imperialaudiologystmarys@nhs.net 

Virtual appointments

We may offer more telephone consultations and introduce video consultation appointments where this is appropriate and accessible.

Micro-suction – wax removal

We have suspended our micro-suction wax removal service.

Face-to-face appointments

If you are offered a face-to-face appointment, please let us know in advance if you have any access requirements or need interpreting or chaperone services.

We would appreciate if you could help us by:

• Attending appointments as close to your appointment time as possible to avoid over-crowding in the waiting room
• Avoid attending if you feel unwell
• Letting us know if you are unable to attend your appointment

Clinics

Our audiology service offers clinics at our hospitals and in the community. 

Charing Cross Hospital hearing and balance service

Address

Audiology department
First floor, south wing
Charing Cross Hospital
Fulham Palace Road
London W6 8RF

Contact

Phone: 020 3311 1021
Email: audiology.imperial@nhs.net

Reception opening hours

9.00am - 5.00pm, Monday to Friday (appointments may be booked outside of these hours).

St Mary's Hospital hearing service

Address

Basement
Mary Stanford building
St Mary’s Hospital
Praed Street
London W2 1NY 

Contact information

Tel: 020 3312 1015 
Email: ichc-tr.imperialaudiologystmarys@nhs.net

Reception opening hours

9.00am - 5.00pm, Monday to Friday (appointments may be booked outside of these hours).

St Mary Abbots hearing aid centre (community service)

Address

2 Beatrice Place
Marloes Road
London W8 5LW

Contact information

Tel: 020 3315 6011
Email: Audiology.imperial@nhs.net

Opening hours

9.00am  - 5.00pm, Monday to Thursday
9.00am - 12.00pm, Friday

Getting to St Mary Abbots hearing aid centre

By tube
Earls Court (Piccadilly and District lines) is a 10 minute walk.

High Street Kensington (Circle and District lines) is a 10 minute walk.

By bus
The following bus stops are a 5-10 minutes walk away:
Cromwell Hospital - 74
Junction of Cromwell Road/Earls Court Road - 328, C1, C3

Parking
Parking is very limited both in Beatrice Place and surrounding streets.

 

 

 

How to find St Mary Abbots in Beatrice Place

• Enter Beatrice Place from the entrance on Marloes Road
• Walk straight to the end of the passageway and turn left
• You will then see the entrance to number 2
• The centre opens at 9.00am and is closed for lunch from 1.15pm - 1.45pm

Parking at St Mary Abbots is very limited, pay and display on street parking available on Marloes Road.

Meet the team

We are a dedicated team of qualified audiologists and hearing therapists, who provide a high standard of clinical expertise, professionalism and continuity of care to all our patients. 

Hearing and balance service   

Head of audiology services

Julie Wilkins, adult hearing assessment, rehabilitation and bone-anchored hearing aid assessment and fitting

Hearing and balance specialist 

Nadia Donald, tinnitus therapy and balance rehabilitation 

Adult audiology clinical leads 

Renee Almeida, adult hearing assessment, diagnosis and rehabilitation 
Catherine Tune, adult hearing assessment, diagnosis, rehabilitation
Fitim Fetahu, adult hearing and vestibular lead

Patient information

Find out what to expect from your audiology appointment. 

Before your appointment

If you feel that you need to be assessed or reassessed by our audiology services, please see your GP for a referral.

Before the appointment, please make sure that your ears are free of wax. Wax can block ears and affect the results of your hearing test. If your ears are blocked with wax, please see you practice nurse or GP for wax removal prior to your appointment.

Please bring your appointment letter with you. If you wear glasses please bring them to your appointment, as well as a list of any current medications.

You are welcome to bring a relative, close friend or carer with you to your appointment.

Please let us know if you have any specific accessibility requirements before your appointment by contacting us directly using the details on the clinics page.

During your appointment

When you arrive please go to the audiology reception desk and check in with our receptionists.

We always try to see our patients at the time of their allocated appointment. If there are any delays the patient will be kept informed.

Most of our appointments last between 45 minutes to one hour. Vestibular assessments can last between one to three hours depending on the tests required.

Please note that we are a teaching hospital, so an audiology or medical student may be present for some appointments. If you do not wish to have them in the room please let the audiologist in charge know and the students will be asked to step outside.

Hearing assessment appointments

The audiologist will take a medical history from you. They will then ask about problems you or your family and friends may have with your hearing.

During a hearing test you will wear headphones and press a button when you hear a tone. This enables the audiologist to establish the quietest sounds you can hear.

The results of your hearing test will be discussed with you and a diagnosis of your hearing will be given. The audiologist will talk you through the best treatment option.

Typical diagnosis after a hearing test are:

• normal hearing – advice and counselling on your results
• hearing loss – we will advise you on communication tactics/skills, counsel you on your hearing loss and suggest a hearing aid if appropriate
• referral to an ear, nose and throat specialist for specific issues with the ear, such as ear infections, pain or balance issues
• referral to the hearing therapy service for specialist equipment advice, counselling, communication tactics and social services support

If a hearing aid is appropriate for you, you will be given the choice to proceed with a hearing aid fitting. 

Depending on your hearing levels, the hearing aid may be fitted to a custom made earmould or a thin tube.

Earmould impression

If you need an earmould, an impression will be taken of your ear. This procedure involves putting a small soft sponge attached to a thread in your ear canal.

The audiologist then fills your ear canal with soft impression material. This takes the shape of your ear and sets within a few minutes. It is then removed and sent off to be made into your earmould.

Once this is complete we will arrange a hearing aid fitting appointment.

Vestibular assessment

Depending on what your specialist has referred you for, you may require some positional tests involving your head and body, eye assessments and caloric irrigation testing. Your appointment letter will have a FAQ page with more details on the specific aspects of the tests.

After your appointment

As soon as all the tests and procedures are completed, the audiologist will write back to your GP or specialist with the outcome of your results.

An appointment will be arranged for your hearing aid fitting or any other referrals that are required.

Re-tubing your hearing aid

If your audiologist has recommended you use a hearing aid and suggested that you re-tube your hearing aid at home, you may find this video useful. Please note that the information provided in the video should not replace the advice given to you by your audiologist. 

Wax build up

Our ears produce wax to protect our ear drums, which traps dust and other particles that get into the ear. The wax slowly works its way to the outside, taking the trapped dirt and dust with it. Hearing aid(s) block your ear canal and therefore you are more likely to experience a build-up of wax. A build-up of wax may prevent audiology tests from being performed and can affect the performance of your hearing aid(s).

 

Do not use cotton buds or insert anything into your ear as it may damage your ear drum/canal and push the wax down the canal further. Instead you can use olive oil ear drops. This is used to encourage the natural movement of wax from the outer ear or to soften the wax before wax removal. Olive oil and a dropper can be purchased from your local chemist/Pharmacy/Boots etc. Or use sodium bicarbonate ear drops. This can be used as an alternative to olive oil. However if you have sensitive skin you should avoid using this. Only use these drops for one week. How often you carry out this procedure is dependent on how much wax you have and how hard it is. Please ask an audiologist or your nurse/GP for guidance on this. If you think that you have a hole in your ear drum (a perforation), you should not put olive oil in your ear,you should see your doctor for wax removal. 

Patient information leaflets

• Cleaning and sterilising ear moulds
• Communication awareness
• Hearing aid batteries
• Hearing aid fault finding
• Fitting your new ear mould(s) to your hearing aid
• Open-fitting hearing aids
• Removing condensation
• Re-tubing ear moulds
• Sound generators
• The induction loop/telecoil system
• Wax build-up: guidance
• Lost hearing aid policy 
• Your balance assessment appointment
• Your hearing aid fitting appointment
• Your hearing assessment appointment
• Your microsuction assessment appointment
• Your speech audiometry appointment
• Your tinnitus assessment appointment

Refer to this service

Find out how to refer patients to our audiology service. 

GP

Please use NHS e-Referrals to refer a patient to our audiology service.

When booking through NHS e-Referrals, our service is available by searching under 'speciality' for 'diagnostic physiological measurement – hearing assess/reassess service – Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust'.

You can also find the service by searching under 'clinical term' for hearing test or other relevant terminology. 

Any Qualified Provider (AQP) referral pathway for hearing assessment

We are no longer accepting referrals into our services through the AQP pathway.

Community clinics for both AQP & Complex pathways are managed via St Mary Abbots Hearing Aid Centre, W8 (eg domicillary visits and South Westminster clinic)

GP advice 

GPs are welcome to contact any of our clinics for advice:

Charing Cross Hospital hearing and balance service

Tel: 020 3311 1021 
Email: Audiology.imperial@nhs.net 

St Mary Abbots hearing aid centre

Tel: 020 3315 6011
Email: Audiology.imperial@nhs.net 

St Mary’s Hospital hearing and balance service

Tel: 020 3312 1015 
Email: ichc-tr.imperialaudiologystmarys@nhs.net

Self-referrals

We do not accept self-referrals into the audiology service. All new patients must be referred by their GP.

Existing hearing aid users who require reassessment can collect a letter from audiology, for their GP to authorise and return, however the GP must book the appointment via NHS e-Referrals.