Aboriginal kids hearing better this NAIDOC Week
Carter and his mum Yolandi (Photo courtesy WA News/Kelsey Reid)
For the first two years of his life, Carter faced the challenge of being hearing impaired. His mum, Yolandi, encountered long waitlists for services and struggled to find support.
"For a long time, Carter couldn’t hear much and would get frustrated, which was really hard to watch," Yolandi said.
Carter's life took a positive turn when he was referred to the Cockburn Aboriginal Ear Health Program, presenting with hearing loss due to ear fluid that was affecting his speech development, following which he had effective grommet surgery at Rockingham General Hospital (RGH).
Adapting to new sounds after years of limited hearing, the moment three-year-old Carter heard his mum speaking was deeply emotional.
"It was such an emotional moment when he could hear me better; I honestly just cried,” Yolandi recalled.
"Since having grommets put in, he is a lot calmer and is talking so much more – we are just so happy.”
Since 2021, RGH has contributed to improving hearing for Aboriginal children, providing ear nose and throat (ENT) surgery for patients of the Cockburn Aboriginal Ear Health Program in conjunction with Cockburn Integrated Health, Moorditj Koort Aboriginal Corporation, Telethon Kids Institute, Telethon Speech, Hearing, Hearing Australia, Child and Adolescent Community Health Service and St John of God Health Care.
Research highlights that otitis media (OM, or middle ear disease) is 10 times more prevalent in Aboriginal children, and there are barriers to early access to co-designed and culturally safe services. The resulting hearing loss significantly impacts on development, schooling, and longer-term employment opportunities.
The Cockburn Aboriginal Ear Health Program provides Aboriginal children and their families with early access to free, timely, culturally safe and co-designed ear health services to identify and treat OM early enough to improve a child’s health and life outcomes.
To date, the program has provided access to specialist services for over 1000 children who have attended clinics with surgical support provided to over 250 children. RGH’s Professor Francis Lannigan has led a range of these ENT procedures for children at the hospital including myringoplasties, adenoidectomies and the insertion of grommets.
“It is great to be part of a team committed to providing timely treatment to some of the most disadvantaged children in our state. RGH’s contribution is a pivotal component of the Cockburn Program, and all staff involved provide outstanding services to the children and families.”
Professor Lannigan stated that addressing the high OM rates in Aboriginal children was important to Closing the Gap given the significant impact hearing loss had on their development and education.
NAIDOC Week 2024 runs from 7 to 14 July and celebrates and recognises the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, under the theme of ‘Keep the fire burning’.
