Bronwyn Bailey is the new team leader of the speech language therapy practice at The Hearing House, and she’s keen to use her new role to ensure equitable health outcomes for all kiritaki (clients).
Bronwyn has worked as a speech and language therapist for nearly 20 years after graduating with a degree in Audiology and Speech Language Therapy from her native South Africa in 2002. Fluent in NZSL, her journey learning sign language began when she was researching the accessibility of tertiary education for Deaf students as part of her thesis.
She moved to New Zealand in 2013 and worked at Ko Taku Reo Deaf Education with school-age children for seven years. There, she developed her skills in collaborating with teachers and built relationships with Deaf colleagues which helped her to deepen her understanding of Deaf culture.
She moved to The Hearing House as a speech language therapist in the adult cochlear implant team in 2021, working with kiritaki across a range of ages and cultures.
The team has a strong focus on empowering clients and supporting them to use their hearing technology and advocate for their communication needs.
As team leader, she oversees the mahi of seven other speech language therapists with oversight over all of The Hearing House’s kiritaki. It’s a role she finds both stimulating and engaging.
“No one day is the same and we’re continually learning from our clients and their whānau,” she says.
“We’re incredibly privileged to build relationships and walk alongside children, young people, whānau and adults through their hearing, language and communication journeys.”
With her wealth of experience in the sector, Bronwyn says that one of the biggest shifts in practise she’s noticed over the years has been the increased focus on equitable access to services – one of the living values of The Hearing House.
“At The Hearing House, we have an ever-growing demand for outreach services across our regions in the North Island. We hope to continue extending them to better serve those communities that are further away from The Hearing House’s base in Auckland,” she says.
“We’re excited to engage in new research and are always looking at best practice and culturally responsive services.
“With advancing technologies, we have integrated online resources, apps and online therapy into our everyday practice which has undoubtedly been the biggest shift in practise.
“With evolving practise in working with Deaf and hard of hearing clients, I hope to further our collaboration by incorporating what we do to continually evolve and develop while aligning with our strategic plans and core values.”
Comments