We’re pleased to share that the QLD Health Audiology Decision RIS Consultation Paper 2  has now been released. This represents an important milestone in the journey toward audiology’s inclusion in the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (NRAS). Following the Ministerial Council's in-principle agreement in August 2024, further consultations are now underway to shape the final decision. 

IAA’s Role in the Process
Independent Audiologists Australia (IAA) has been invited to participate in a focused interview with the Audiology Decision-RIS Project Team. This is an invaluable opportunity to share insights into our profession’s service delivery and regulatory processes, ensuring independent audiologists have a strong voice in shaping the future.

Public Submission Opportunity
From the week of 9 December 2024, a public submission process will be live on the Queensland Health website. This is a key chance for members and stakeholders to share their perspectives directly with the Audiology Decision-RIS Project Team. 

If you’d like to contribute to IAA’s response or have any questions, please reach out to us by email here. Alternatively, you can contact the Deloitte Audiology Decision-RIS Project Team directly here. We look forward to sharing further updates as they become available.

Written by Dr Tegan Keogh (PhD - Audiology) IAA President

Independent Audiologists Australia (IAA) strongly believe in registration, via the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra), for ALL Audiologists, regardless of the workplace you work in. For over 15 years, IAA has lobbied and campaigned government for what we think is an important step in the quality assurance of our profession.

IAA cares about the standing of Audiologists within the community, and the way Audiologists are portrayed in the public eye, which is why in 2023 IAA was the only professional body to submit a request for registration at the National Health Ministers Meeting.

We care about ensuring that the public can receive quality care, in addition to the future of student Audiologists, and their positioning within the sector. Put simply, there are significant reasons why IAA continues to advocate for this important step which enhances our profession (for more about Ahpra, see this link: https://www.ahpra.gov.au/About-Ahpra.aspx )

Ahpra registration enhances:

1. Protection of title

According to Ahpra, in Australia, the titles of registered health professions are 'protected' by law... (continue reading)

THE STATE OF HEARING HEALTH IN AUSTRALIA: TIME FOR CHANGE

Audiologists for AHPRA by 2026

When we commemorated World Hearing Day last month and reflected on the theme of 'Changing Mindsets’, it's evident that the Australian hearing health sector stands at a pivotal juncture. David Brady, Chairperson of Deafness Forum Australia, aptly encapsulates the moment's urgency: "It’s about ensuring quality, education, and most importantly, safety." Indeed, it's time for a transformation in audiology that prioritises regulation, education, and patient well-being.

In recent years, alarming incidents have shaken public confidence in the provision of quality hearing care in Australia. Reports of catastrophic failures in hospital audiology departments, where children received cochlear implants programmed incorrectly, highlighted systemic deficiencies in our current self-regulatory system. These lapses not only result in immediate harm but also perpetuate lasting disadvantages for individuals and families, impacting their lifelong speech and language development. The need for external regulation of audiology as a specialist allied health profession has never been more pressing. Continue Reading...

INDEPENDENT AUDIOLOGISTS AUSTRALIA: HEALTH MINISTERS MUST PUSH FOR REGISTRATION OF PROFESSION FOLLOWING SHORTFALLS IN TWO HOSPITAL AUDIOLOGY DEPARTMENTS

Paediatric Certification not fit-for-purpose, AHPRA registration of audiologists urgently needed

November 17th, 2023 –

Independent Audiologists Australia (IAA) has welcomed the report released by the Townsville Hospital and Health Services (THHS) following the investigation of the Townsville University Hospital's (TUA) Audiology department. IAA believes that THHS should take action on all 25 of the recommendations in the report. The investigation was initiated by THHS's internal audit process after a cluster of "unexpected outcomes" was discovered in the follow-up testing of newborns from the hearing screening program. THHS voluntarily expanded the review to include cochlear implant mapping outcomes after becoming aware of reported adverse outcomes at South Australia's Women's and Children's Health Network (WCHN). THHS should be commended for initiating a timely, transparent, and comprehensive investigation.

IAA was saddened to see these issues surface in hospitals across multiple states. We raise concerns that audits are not routinely performed in all states, and recommend that this be considered with urgency. The reviews of both TUH and WCHN highlight the challenges encountered by audiology departments in hospitals—over-scheduling, understaffing, and audiologists often working in isolation. The THHHS recommendations included collaborative models of care, and engagement with external providers. Where possible, IAA strongly believes that patients should be informed of community-based, private, and not-for-profit cochlear implant and audiology services.

Click here for more

From Deafness Forum Australia's November 2023 'One in Six' magazine:

Calls for National Regulation of Audiologists: Townsville hospital audiology failures prompt millions in compensation.

Reported in this article by Andrew Messenger for The Guardian, The Queensland government will pay more than $2.2m to families of 97 child patients of a hospital’s audiology unit.

Townsville University hospital’s audiology unit programmed cochlear implants in some children incorrectly, misdiagnosed others, and even conducted hearing tests on an infant who was asleep*, a damning independent review has found.

The clinic is the only public option for many patients in northern Queensland, who would otherwise be forced to travel to Brisbane for specialised care.

The clinic was poorly organised, staff were overworked, and key protocols did not appear to be followed, leading to poor outcomes, monitoring, measurement, and reporting.

An investigation was conducted and last week a report was published. Read the report. The Queensland government has promised to spend more than $2.2m compensating the families of 97 patients who required additional testing and follow-up care as a result of the errors.

Read the full article here

*A clarification from IAA: Most infant hearing tests such as ABR and OAEs are appropriately performed while the infant is asleep or in a quiet, restful state. Cortical testing (the test flagged in the report) is a specific verification measure requiring that the infant be awake.

OpinionHealth

Why Australia must break the conspiracy of silence and restore hearing to the most vulnerable

Ranjana Srivastava

It is time the government listened to the experts and reined in misleading providers

• Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast

Wed 5 Jul 2023 12.01 AEST

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“If I don’t do something about my hearing, I fear I could lose my mind.”

While hearing loss is indeed a strongly modifiable risk factor for dementia, it shouldn’t have taken this pronouncement for me to pay attention.

For some years, my mother has observed that her hearing isn’t as good as it used to be, which describes nearly three-quarters of people like her over age 70. But she seemed to get by in social settings and sometimes at home we just shouted a little louder.

Attracted by an ad for free hearing aids at a mall, she met an obliging man who, after perfunctory testing, declared that she needed hearing aids. She demurred due to the stigma but the man kept calling and texting every week. Eventually, the combination of “wasting the poor man’s time” and her own concern led her back to the shop where she was fitted with a pair of hearing aids. To her mind, their being “free” reasonably mitigated any downside. “If they work, that’s good; if not, they are free.”

Read the full article...

INDEPENDENT AUDIOLOGISTS AUSTRALIA CALLS FOR INDUSTRY REGULATION  
IN WAKE OF COCHLEAR IMPLANT PROGRAMMING REVELATIONS 

 IAA member flags incorrectly mapped paediatric cochlear implants  
 

“We welcome the announcement that an independent and external review will be conducted by the South Australian government, of the cochlear implant program at the Women's and Children's Hospital in Adelaide, in light of their recent public apology for incorrectly programming the cochlear implants of one in four children in its program” - Dr Tegan Keogh, President, Independent Audiologists Australia (IAA). 

IAA supports the call for an extensive and independent review of the Hospital’s cochlear implant mapping program, in addition to the diagnostic Audiology program.  Read more...

IAA  talks with former member James Roxburgh  who  has carried influences from audiology to the writing and  publication of his first novel, The Banksia House Breakout,  released today by Ventura Press.

Play the video  below  for the full  conversation between  IAA CEO Louise Collingridge and James  Roxburgh. 

IAA members adopt best health practice to minimise the spread of infectious diseases in their clinics.  Audiology is low risk for spreading disease and where possible consultations can be conducted via the telephone or internet.

Any member of the public with concerns about attending an audiology clinic can contact IAA as well as their clinic,  to discuss.

CapTel's US operation has stepped in to temporarily keep their text-captioned telephone service running for Australia's deaf community despite the Federal Government cancelling its deal with the service provider.

Read the full article from the ABC here...