In this paper, we present a study of audiologists’ use of technology in consultations with patients. We highlight the ways in which the hardware and software the audiologist uses to adjust the settings on the patient’s hearing aid are not designed with their necessary use within the consultation’s interaction in mind. Rather, the technology is designed for use by a single user with audiological training. Furthermore, the local interactional context (in the consultation) in which the technology is used creates difficulties for patients to follow the course of their own treatment. For example, the relevance of the audiologists’ actions with the technology is often not available to the patient. Patients cannot know (due to both the arrangement of the computer and the technical sophistication of the software’s interface) whether or not the audiologist is actually addressing their problem when doing something with the technology. We argue that the technology is much more than simply a professional medical tool that mediates an adequate solution to patients’ difficulties. The move towards “patient-centred” design of technologies must appreciate the variety of roles of these technologies in the consultation. Such roles of the technology in a consultation include patient education, explanation, demonstration, and the medical professional’s justification of treatment decisions. In making these observations, we suggest that the existing design and use of technology can marginalise patients’ own participation in their treatment.