Part Two: Australian Hearing in the community

More documents

Recommendations

Info

34 Australian Hearing Annual report 2009 Multicultural Services recognising cultural diversity Australian Hearing recognises the diversity of Australian society and the need to provide accessible and equitable services to culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) populations. Of the age groups eligible for hearing services under the Australian Government Office of Hearing Services Program, 15 per cent of people aged 0–24 years and 16.5 per cent of people aged 65 years and over speak a language other than English. CALD take-up of services exceeded targets Our Corporate Plan goal was to increase the take-up rate of services by CALD clients by two per cent. We exceeded this target in 2008/09, with a 3.3 per cent increase in CALD clients. Australian Hearing multicultural communication and service delivery strategy In 2008/09, we provided new access pathways to services for non-English speaking Australians by: • increasing the range of translated materials to be more responsive to the requirements of CALD clients; • providing guidelines to staff on the use of accredited interpreters and translators; • developing multilingual information for the Australian Hearing website; and • reviewing HR strategies in order to increase recruitment of hearing centre staff who speak a second language. We focused on the areas of communication, responsiveness and providing effective, resultsoriented solutions to meet the needs of clients from culturally diverse backgrounds. We continued to translate key publications into 10 priority languages. We also created a suite of new resources in response to the identified needs of staff and clients. This work will continue as we remain sensitive to the changing needs of a diverse society. Australian Hearing consults the CALD community We enhanced our CALD service delivery strategy through focus groups held with key community stakeholders throughout Australia. These were facilitated by our Chairman, Kathyrn Greiner AO. Consultation with CALD communities continues on a regular basis at a local level throughout the hearing centre network. Jade’s favourite sound: The familiar sounds of my home: from my bedroom upstairs, I can differentiate the members of my family just by listening. The same household sounds differ depending on the person. For example, when they’re in the kitchen, their footsteps, the way they come in the front door. A simple collection of sounds can paint an entire person. Jade Wong, Audiologist, Australian Hearing Box Hill. Box Hill graduate audiologist, Jade Wong, at the Respite and Aged Care Support Services Expo in May 2009.
Part Two: Australian Hearing in the community 35 One of the outcomes from these stakeholder meetings was the recommendation to use a communication medium that could be easily accessed by the CALD community. Based on this recommendation, we ran a radio campaign in Greek, Italian, Cantonese and Mandarin on community radio during April and May 2009. The objective was to build awareness of hearing health and promote access to services via a free telephone interpreting service. Telscreen launched in Cantonese and Mandarin We launched the third version of our telephone hearing test, Telscreen, in Cantonese and Mandarin on 20 March 2009 to coincide with Harmony Day. This service allows Cantonese and Mandarin speakers access to a free hearing test over the telephone without having to leave their home. We are developing further language versions for Telscreen in 2009/10. See page six for more on Telscreen TM . Staff raised their cultural competency We conducted cultural awareness training for all staff throughout the Australian Hearing network using an eLearning tool developed by our sister agency, Centrelink. Raising cultural competency standards continues to be a focus for our Multicultural Services and participation in cultural festivals, for example, Chinese New Year and Harmony Day celebrations, has been successful in building understanding and respect between Australian Hearing and non-English speaking communities. Reporting practices improved We have improved reporting mechanisms to ensure accountability for the implementation of the service delivery imperatives and to assist in guiding our organisation to consistently exceed best practice expectations. Ethno-specific events and activities Our centre staff attended many ethno-specific events during the year to promote our services. For example, there is a significant Chinese population in Box Hill, Victoria. To cater for the needs of this population, staff from our Box Hill centre attended the Respite and Aged Care Support Services Expo and the Chinese Seniors’ Speak up Forum at the Box Hill Town Hall. Both events were held in May 2009 and our staff engaged the community by providing Chinese-specific information and Australian Hearing show bags. Through these interactions, staff booked further community talks and screenings at local senior citizens groups. These events also allowed for great networking opportunities with other providers such as Centrelink, Uniting Care and the Commonwealth Carer Respite Centre. All Australian Hearing centres wished the Chinese community a Happy New Year on 26 January 2009.
Page 1 and 2: Part Two: Australian Hearing in the
Page 15: Part Two: Australian Hearing in the

Part Two: Australian Hearing in the community

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?