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More help to hear in Tamworth and Gunnedah
16 December 2008
The appointment of two new Audiometrists will increase Hunter New England Health’s capability to assess and treat hearing loss in the Gunnedah and Tamworth areas.
The nurses will be involved in assessing a hearing and determining the most appropriate intervention for the client and their family. Nurse Audiometrists are also involved in hearing health promotion and advocacy.
Liz Worboys, who will work at Gunnedah Community Health, and Lucy Rindo, who will work at Tamworth and Nundle Community Health, recently completed their study and are looking forward to working in their new roles.
Liz, who was born and raised in Gunnedah, currently works part time as the practice nurse for Barber St Medical Centre and has previously worked as a Registered Nurse and Midwife at Gunnedah Health Service.
She is enjoying her new role as Nurse Audiometrist, which allows her to improve the hearing health of residents in the Gunnedah region.
“At the hearing screening station at Ag-Quip, I realised how many famers and members of their family - children through to older adults – who had some degree of noise-related hearing loss,” Liz said.
“In my new job I’ll be able to increase awareness about hearing loss in the community and give people the knowledge they need to prevent it.”
Lucy has been working with Tamworth and Nundle Community Health’s Child and Family Health team for seven years, but it was her experience in screening newborns as part of the State Wide Infant Hearing Screening Program that encouraged her to learn more about the speciality.
“I’ve always enjoyed my work screening babies, but in my former role I wasn’t involved in their care after a problem was identified,” Lucy said.
“Specialising in audiometry means I have more knowledge to help treat those with hearing loss and see the benefits they get from my work.”
Tamworth Community Health Centre Clinical Nurse Consultant Audiometrist Kathy Challinor said the addition of Liz and Lucy to Tamworth and Gunnedah Health Services was a welcome staff boost.
“It’s great to see new nurses moving into the field,” Ms Challinor said.
“We have an aging workforce and many Nurse Audiometrists are retiring so it’s great to see new faces coming into the profession, particularly in regional areas.”
If you are interested in pursuing Nursing Audiometry as a career please contact Kathy Challinor on 6767 8155.
Contact: Emma Gibbs
Phone: (02) 6767 7137 or 0428 114 767
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