| Department Of Human Services | www.australia.gov.au | |
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| Department Of Human Services | www.australia.gov.au | |
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Services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and adults
Free hearing services are available for all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and many adults.
The following groups of people are eligible:
Help for adults
Often it's not the person with the hearing loss who notices they are having trouble hearing. It's their family and friends who can see what the person is missing out on.
Many people with hearing loss feel they are losing touch with friends and family. They might have problems joining in the conversation, or feel silly when they get things wrong sometimes.
Sharing news and stories helps keep relationships alive. Feeling connected to people around us is very important for our wellbeing. Hearing assessments and hearing aids are free.
Tell people around you about our hearing services. You may not ever know it, but you might be helping someone with hearing trouble get back into life.
Help for children
It's never too early to get help. In 2009, 221 Australian children aged less than 1 year old were fitted with hearing aids for the first time.
If you can see your child is having trouble hearing, go to your health centre first.
If an ear infection is the cause and it goes on for more than 3 months, or if your child has a permanent hearing loss, hearing aids will help to get them hearing again.
Children learn many new things every day. They learn to speak by hearing others speak. They miss out on a lot of learning if they can't hear for weeks or months.
Hearing aids make voices and other sounds around us louder: a knock at the door, a car approaching, someone calling out to say hello.
Wearing hearing aids means children don't have to work so hard to hear. They can join in playing and talking with friends, they can follow stories and hear at school.
Over 1,600 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are wearing hearing aids today, at home and school.
Come and see us
We have more than 110 permanent hearing centres and more than 300 visiting centres around Australia.
We also make regular visits to more than 220 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, in cities, towns and remote areas of the country.
When in communities, Australian Hearing audiologists offer:
Call us on 131 797 (local call charge from a land line phone) to find out where and when your closest service is provided.
If you are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, make sure you tell the person you are speaking to.