News and Stories
Whether it’s the weekend, the holidays or you’re just looking for simple at-home activity to entertain children, this craft activity is a good one to jot down. Hear and Say’s Listening and Spoken Language Specialist, Katie Smith runs the Brisbane LEAP Group Social Skills program, and also holds the important title around the centre as the ‘Queen of Craft’. Check out Katie’s step-by-step guide below for a colourful rainbow craft activity that’s both fun and educational. “There are plenty of learning goals that work well with this activity. As you’re making your rainbow, ...
Information technology specialist, Bruce Eagle is one of the two-thirds of Australians who suffer from tinnitus at some point in their life. Frustrated with the constant ringing noise in his ears and a mild but increasingly noticeable hearing loss, Bruce, aged 63, turned to Hear and Say for a hearing test. Now fitted with hearing aids specifically matched to his type of hearing loss and day-to-day needs, Bruce said he had already noticed a difference in the few months since wearing them. “Beforehand people seemed to be mumbling in conversations, but now I better understand what ...
Year Six student Benjamin is fascinated by all things mechanical and electronic – meaning his high-tech hearing device is a great fit in more ways than one. Diagnosed with profound hearing loss in his right ear, Benjamin now uses a cochlear implant to hear clearly all the time, both at home and in the classroom. “Benjamin’s hearing loss was gradual from four years old. Coupled with his prior diagnosis of autism, it had created significant obstacles to his learning and engagement at school,” said Benjamin’s mum, Julia. After being referred to Hear and Say, Benjamin went ...
With seven months now passed since his cochlear implant was first switched onto sound, two-year-old James has been living life loud. “James loves waking up early every morning and running full pelt around the house, laughing and screaming at the top of his lungs,” said James’s mum, Bianca. “He also loves to play with his toy cars and trucks, and is thrilled when he hears motorbikes or anything loud go by our house.” It was the hospital-based hearing screening that flagged to Bianca and husband, Steven that there was a potential hearing issue in their son’s right ear. A ...
From the bustle of a filmset to watching playbacks in an editing room, young filmmaker Zoe Seitz couldn’t imagine a world without sound. Having graduated from a Bachelor of Film Production in 2016, the 23-year-old currently works as an audio-visual technician and freelance videographer from her home on the Gold Coast – a career she’s aspired to since childhood. “My passion for filmmaking initially came from watching a variety of TV shows and films growing up,” Zoe said. “In addition to my current jobs, hopefully this year I will also get to work on my first big-scale film ...
It’s been only five years since 27-year-old, Nick graduated with his degree in industrial design, but it’s a career that has already seen him across projects ranging from designing padding for indoor trampoline centres and truck interiors, through to his current role with a world-leading aluminium company working with window and door elements. The new year ahead will see Nick apply his design skills a little closer to home, having recently purchased his first house – a “real fixer-upper” – together with his fiancée, Kirsten. Renovation sites and design warehouses are ...
He’s not even three years old, and already Max knows the power of a good story. “Max loves dinosaurs, trucks and playing outside, but his favourite thing to do is read books,” said Max’s mum, Kerri. “I often find him going through books from his bookstand, or bringing a book to anyone who will read to him. His current favourites are, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt and Three Billy Goats Gruff.” Reading stories together also plays an important role in Max’s listening and spoken language therapy at Hear and Say, specialised speech therapy targeted at supporting the ...
Another milestone has been chalked up for our Hear to Learn – School Hearing Screening program, with our 1,000th school visit. It was the Prep classes of Windsor State School in Brisbane’s inner north who helped mark the momentous occasion, adding to over 63,000 students who have been screened through the program since it started in 2015. “Identifying hearing loss and ensuring there are no barriers to learning sets students up for success as they begin school. This is the fifth year our students have had their hearing screened via the Hear to Learn program and we are extremely ...
Growing research is shining light on the association between dementia and hearing loss, with considerable opportunities being identified for the possible role of audiology in future dementia support. An estimated 459,000 Australians currently live with dementia, a figure that’s anticipated to rise to over one million by 2058 (Dementia Australia, 2018). Although the exact mechanisms of hearing loss as a risk factor for developing dementia are still unknown, recent research suggests that hearing loss potentially increases long-term risks of cognitive decline and incidental ...
While it’s common to hear the words speech and language used interchangeably, they actually have different meanings in a clinical setting – as Hear and Say Listening and Spoken Language Specialist, Jessica Tattam explains. Speech is the way we produce sounds to form words. That is, speech is the physical act of talking. It’s how we articulate our vowels and consonants in such a way to generate the recognisable sounds that make language. For example, to produce the ‘s’ sound our mouth, lips, tongue and voice need to be in specific places. The blade of the tongue is almost ...
Maia’s Story
At 9.10pm on 24 October 2013 our beautiful daughter Maia was born.
The moment of elation was short-lived as we immediately noticed her left ear was missing. I frantically looked to the medical team around me for answers but received none.
Panic set in as we waited 4 days in hospital for an ENT to explain her condition, by which point we already had all the answers from Simone, who runs the Microtia and Atresia Program at Hear and Say.
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