Ear Health

Our Ear Health Team is a multidisciplinary group involved in epidemiological studies, qualitative research, data linkage, pathogenesis and clinical trials. 

We are part of the national Centre of Research Excellence in Ear and Hearing Health of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Children, whose mission is to close the gap in educational and social disadvantage associated with the high prevalence of OM and conductive hearing loss in Australian Indigenous children.

Within this CRE, our team's primary activities will be in prevention (healthy environment, community empowerment), capacity building, pathogenesis, vaccine trials and a systematic review. We aim to establish an urban Aboriginal ear health program to determine prevalence of disease, optimal diagnostic methods in young children and key risk factors; to undertake qualitative research to understand impact of OM on children and families and barriers to accessing care; and to investigate language and communication skills in an urban setting, with a view to developing and evaluating culturally responsive speech pathology services.

We are also:

• investigating the pathogenesis of OM and the development and evaluation of novel interventions
• looking at the microbiome and OM
• conducting a data linkage study of OM and related surgical procedures.
• investigating the bacteria and viruses that cause ear disease and how our immune system fights them in order to develop new therapies, including vaccines.
• establishing an 'urban ear health audit' in the metropolitan area and working with local Aboriginal organisations to investigate community barriers to delivering ear health initiatives.

The Ear Health Team has close links with relevant stakeholders and will continue to work with government agencies and the Aboriginal Health Council of WA to develop a WA Ear Health Strategy (to deliver evidence-based, sustainable ear health services to WA children) and establish a minimum dataset to assist in monitoring the impact of programs.