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Well Andy, I am going through the same thing, but from your father's perspective. I am 70, and have lost some of my hearing (most likely through years of boat building using power tools and no ear protection). But it runs in my family too. The government does provide hearing aids to pensioners with confirmed hearing loss. There is a protocol to go through, but you can also be trapped by those folks outside the hearing shops in the Mall, who are drumming up business. My two adult children have been at me for years to get a hearing aid, as they apparently talk to me but I don't hear what they say.
So I went along with them, went through the process, and actually invested some of my own money to get a better device. The standard hearing aid provided by the government is pretty bad, it doesn't offer any of the band management filtering that the better devices provide. Trust me wearing a stock budget device is not a pleasant experience, particularly in crowded noisy environments, where you can get overwhelmed by the amplification of background noise. Even though I have a good quality device, I rarely wear it, usually only when I am visiting my daughter and her family Sydney, and that is to keep the peace.
I see it this way:
It is my choice whether I wear it or not, and since I live alone there is no one to get upset if I don't hear them. So what if I have the TV turned up louder, or enjoy the quiet of a drive in the car (I will hear sirens), or simply choose to ignore the inane chatter of coffee shop clients. It can be seen as a blessing to escape the background noise of modern society. And I do not like being told what to do at 70.
My suggestion is to stop pushing him, let him decide when and where he uses it.
PS, I have five grand-daughters and have no trouble hearing them, that is my benchmark.
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