Is a tympanoplasty the only way to treat a perforated ear drum? i feel that the ent may have been hasty. what about antibiotic ear drops?

Depends: Different therapeutic approaches: perforation of tympanic membrane associated acute ear infection (otitis media) requires adequate antibiotic treatment; perforation by trauma usually heals by itself; persistent perforation after ventilation tube falls off generally requires tympanoplasty.

Age/duration matter: If the patient is a 4 yo kid you can wait quite a while to see if it self heals since their growth/repair rate is great. If you are a 40 yo with a persistent perforation the chances of it healing with drops or waiting is considerably less. If you aren't convinced by the 1st ENT get another opinion by someone not in the same group.

Tympanopladty: If the perforation is due to a trauma, there is a high chance it will heal spontaneously . If the perforation is chronic and associated chronic drainage, surgery is more likely. If the perforation is tiny, it may not even need treatment. Certain eardrops with that contain both antibiotics and steroids have a higher rate of persistent perforation.