Most Indigenous children in remote areas are at risk of hearing loss. This project aims to change that

Newly-graduated Indigenous audiometrists are heading home to the bush, to help tackle a 'shameful crisis' of hearing loss. It's estimated that in some remote communities, up to 90 per cent of children are affected.

Audiometrist Margaret Murray with her niece, Tegan. Credit: Supplied Macquarie University

Margaret Murray is an Aboriginal Health Worker living in the NSW-Victorian border town of Albury, who knows firsthand about the devastating impacts of hearing infections.

“As a child growing up near Mildura [in northern Victoria] I had a perforated ear,” the Maraura Barkindji woman says.

“Dad had to take me to the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne for surgery," she says.

“I was lucky to be left with scarring but no permanent hearing loss. But a lot of other children with perforated ears grow up to need hearing aids.”

Audiometry students at Macquarie University. Credit: Jesse Taylor

Ms Murray is 53 and recently graduated with a Diploma in Audiometry. She was among 15 Aboriginal students from remote communities to take part in a ground-breaking hearing project at Sydney’s Macquarie University, in partnership with TAFE NSW.

“It means the world to me with to raise awareness of hearing loss in my community, and help to prevent it by letting people know about the importance of hearing tests,” she says.

"It is amazing to see Ms Murray working with Hearing Australia and helping others," says Cara Cross, a research fellow with the Aboriginal Children's Hearing Health Project, run by Macquarie University.

Experts say childhood hearing loss may be as high as 90 per cent in some remote communities, most often caused by common middle ear infections.

Cara Cross and her daughter, Mataya. Credit: SBS / Sandra Fulloon

“It's absolutely shameful,” says Ms Cross, a Worimi Biripai woman living in Sydney.

“Australia has the worst rate of preventable hearing loss amongst our Aboriginal kids in the world.

“It is a crisis and the World Health Organisation has identified it as such.”

Left untreated, Ms Cross says ear infections can have long-term impacts.

“If a child can't hear their family and their kin talking, then they won’t be able to pick up speech correctly so this can lead to a disability.

“Many children have speech issues, and literacy issues, which can flow into a lack of being able to find suitable employment.

“So, it can actually flow on into their adult life and cause quite significant issues.”

It’s hoped newly-graduated Indigenous audiometrists will boost testing levels in their communities, leading to earlier treatment and better outcomes for those with hearing loss, says Catherine McMahon, Professor of Audiology at Macquarie University.

“For Aboriginal people, particularly Aboriginal children, there's an incredibly high prevalence of middle ear disease and of hearing loss. And so this project aims to address that.

“If we are able to detect a problem early then we can mitigate all the long-term effects that middle ear disease and hearing loss can have in kids."

Eileen Byers is among the audiometry graduates. She grew up on a mission near Casino, in northern NSW, and hopes to improve outcomes for children in her community.

New audiometrist Eileen Byers from Casino, NSW. Credit: SBS / Sandra Fulloon

"There are a fair few children who would have hearing loss in the Northern Rivers," says Ms Byers, an Aboriginal Health Worker.

"It is a really big step to be able to come out of my comfort zone and do something like this to help the community."

Lack of access to medical care is just one reason at-risk children often miss out on treatment, according to Ms Cross.

“There can be a lot of fear for Aboriginal mothers, particularly in identifying that their children are having health problems given the issues of the past where children would be taken away.

“The whole idea of going to a doctor and identifying that your child may be having a health issue can be quite scary.

“There's still that layer of anxiety that comes with that.

“So, for Aboriginal mothers, knowing that they are going into a place that's culturally safe allows them to relax and get their child treated without having the fears in the back of their mind.”

Sound Scouts founder Carolyn Mee. Credit: SBS / Sandra Fulloon

Game-based hearing tests are another approach says Carolyn Mee who developed Sound Scouts, a free online hearing test for children.

“We've seen great results from the testing in schools in terms of picking up children with hearing loss, we've detected children with permanent hearing issues," Ms Mee says.

“The children play three game based activities. They listen for the sounds, either swipe the objects that they hear or tap on a red button when they hear a specific sound."

Sound Scouts is available in English and Spanish – and Ms Mee says soon also in Mandarin and Arabic.

“We use actually language to assess hearing and we also use a mid-frequency tone. So it's a combination of both language and tone testing that gives the overall result."

While most Australian states have no mandatory school hearing tests, Ms Mee hopes that will soon change.

“People don't realise that if children can't hear, they can't learn, or if they can't or struggle to hear, they'll struggle to learn. So it's really important to identify hearing issues.

Carolyn Mee demonstrating Sound Scouts to Adelyn Naidoo. Credit: SBS / Sandra Fulloon

“What we'd like to see happen with Sound Scouts is for it to be used as a screening of children at school entry, across the nation."

A recent Melbourne University study found that up to 10 per cent of primary school aged children in Victoria suffer some level of hearing loss.

Professor McMahon says the culturally safe approach to hearing tests may soon be adapted for other high-risk groups.

Professor Catherine McMahon from Macquarie University. Credit: SBS / Sandra Fulloon

“Disadvantaged children and families from refugee or migrant backgrounds are also vulnerable to middle ear disease and hearing loss.

“That is why it is really important that we have targeted screening programs in all schools."

Professor McMahon hopes that new approaches developed in Australia may soon improve hearing outcomes offshore, too.

“We'd like to see them used in First Nations communities, whether it might be Canada or the US or New Zealand. This is a really important solution that will drive a change.”