Nearly 30 hearing specialists have spent three days in Ballarat this week broadening their knowledge and skills in whole-person care, with a central emphasis that looking after people\u2019s hearing is not just about their ears.<\/p>\n
The 27 audiologists from Country Hearing Care (CHC) have been participating in the group\u2019s Audiology in Practice \u2013 Cognition, Connection and Whole Person Care gathering at the Lake View Hotel.<\/p>\n
It has been part of CHC\u2019s annual company-wide get-together, which rotates around the group\u2019s nine regional Victorian clinic locations including Ballarat and Bendigo.<\/p>\n
The group also has a presence in places like Nuriootpa in South Australia\u2019s Barossa Valley and Broken Hill in New South Wales, and makes fortnightly visits to smaller towns such as St Arnaud, Stawell and Heathcote.<\/p>\n
Staff have learnt from contributors such as the City of Ballarat\u2019s Community Connector Program, the National Acoustics Laboratory, Cochlear Pty Ltd, and even a remote hook-up with Auditory Rehabilitation Specialists in the United States.<\/p>\n
According to the group\u2019s clinical services manager Maddison Kennedy, a major presenter at the sessions was Campbell Stevens, who owned the Ballarat Hearing Clinic for over 25 years before its merger with Country Hearing Care in 2024.<\/p>\n
Stevens is now director of audiology with the group.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery year we meet up for what we call an internal conference,\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cWe come together, we have a theme, and this year it is connection, cognition and change.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy said sessions had been delivered in person and online, with a focus on untreated hearing loss being the No. 1 modifiable risk factor in dementia.<\/p>\n
She said CHC had partnered with Dementia Australia to deliver services in Bendigo, Mildura and Swan Hill.<\/p>\n
Five members of the Ballarat team will participate in Dementia Australia\u2019s Memory Walk and Jog at Lake Wendouree tomorrow (Saturday) to raise awareness of the condition and money for the support of those living with it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe really try and spread awareness of how important hearing loss is for your overall whole-person health including brain health and physical health,\u201d Kennedy said of the group\u2019s mission.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe goal is to provide accessible and ethical care with a focus on the whole person, not just the ears.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Nearly 30 hearing specialists have spent three days in Ballarat this week broadening their knowledge and skills in whole-person care, with a central emphasis that looking after people\u2019s hearing is not just about their ears. The 27 audiologists from Country Hearing Care (CHC) have been participating in the group\u2019s Audiology in Practice \u2013 Cognition, Connection […]<\/p>\n