Rural Communities Are More Affected
Did you know 9 in 10 Aboriginal children in remote areas have otitis media, a serious middle ear infection that can cause hearing loss?
That’s the highest rate in the world.
Since 2014, our team has worked arm in arm with the Puntukurnu Aboriginal Medical Service (PAMS) to provide children and adults in remote Pilbara communities with ear and hearing care. Differing from most remote hearing services, we send both Audiologists and ENTs to provide tertiary ear and hearing care to children and adults. Essentially, this means we can examine, treat, provide diagnosis and prescribe medication, all in one visit.
We offer services in:
- Jigalong
- Parnngurr
- Punmu
- Kunawarritji
The service we provide on the ground is vital, but to make a true change, more needs to be done.
Researchers at Ear Science have been working on new ways to help treat conditions like otitis media. One such innovation is ClearDrum©, an almost invisible ear implant, which is set to revolutionise the way eardrums are repaired by combining silk worms and science to heal burst eardrums experienced by millions of people around the world including the children in our rural communities who suffer from chronic middle ear disease.