I’m currently doing my one year internship at Neurosensory as an overseas-trained audiologist. I studied at the University of Hong Kong and worked as an Audiologist at a public hospital for 6 years. I have arrived in Australia for over a year. I attended tinnitus training at Neurosensory to specialise in this area. I like working at Neurosensory because the service is customised to the unique needs of each individual client.
In the public setting that I worked, the range of hearing aid options was limited and the hearing aids were more basic. I speak Cantonese, Mandarin and English. Two months ago I saw a client who also spoke Mandarin. He’d come from another clinic, and despite numerous hearing aid adjustments was unable to hear his family members properly. He came to us for a second opinion, and was prepared to buy new hearing aids. I was actually able to adjust his aids so he could hear well. It turned out his settings were suitable for people who speak English, but not Mandarin. You see, Mandarin is a tonal language and the client needed more amplification in the bass tones. In English there is a focus on the treble tones to maximise speech clarity, whilst in Mandarin there is more emphasis across frequencies especially the bass tones.
When we solved the issue, the client was extremely happy. He has since transferred permanently to Neurosensory. I really enjoy seeing clients across a range of ages – from babies, to older adults. You come to realise how important hearing is. For children, hearing is important in developing language and for their education. With older adults it’s maintaining communication with friends and family.
