Hearing Healthcare for Every Age

On 3 March every year, we acknowledge the importance of hearing healthcare, but this should not be limited to one day of the year.

Hearing forms a critical part of our development and functioning throughout our lives. As infants and children, good hearing allows us to learn language, build relationships, engage with our world and create thought patterns. It allows us to create emotional bonds with our families and friends. As we become older, it is the key to learning in the school environment, on the playground and at home. Our hearing is critical as we go on to function efficiently in the workplace and our social pursuits, be it in meetings, oneto-one conversations, training programmes and recreational activities. As we age, it is the sense that helps us stay connected with our community and family, and mentally stimulated.

Many factors affect how we use our hearing effectively. Most of us are aware that with age or ill health, our ability to hear sound efficiently can be affected. However, from infancy, conditions such as ear infections can affect hearing, which in turn affects the ability to hear and acquire language and good listening skills. Difficulties with auditory processing (how the brain deals with what the ear hears or what we often refer to as listening) affect our ability to use auditory information at any stage in our lives, making it harder to communicate effectively. Exposure to excessive noise, certain medications and genetic factors can also affect hearing at any time.

An audiologist is a professional equipped and trained to assess hearing, balance and auditory processing issues at any stage of life. Early and thorough diagnostic assessment enables the audiologist to identify the areas of difficulty and make the appropriate recommendations, whether they are medical, technological or rehabilitative, thus limiting the life-changing effects that changes in hearing and auditory processing can have.

Find out more about your and your family’s hearing health this World Hearing Day by visiting an audiologist.

Text: Heidi Allan | Image: Pexels

When did you start working at Essence Cafe and what brought you here?

I started working at Essence Café in 2016. I have worked here up to the present, except for 3 months when I worked at Burgundy Bourgogne Cottages. I started as a cleaner, as I came to work here straight out of school, seeking an opportunity to develop my skills and gain experience in the industry. How has working at Essence Café helped you develop your skills and qualities as a professional?

“I have learnt a great deal working at Essence. After working as a cleaner for my first six months, I was trained as a barista, and then as a waitress, and now I have been promoted to manager of the café. Not only can I make a great cup of coffee, I can also make a range of cocktails. I know the workings of the restaurant and its menu inside-out.