Equipment shortage affecting audiology services

servicesGeorgetown: The Health Ministry’s Audiological Practitioner Training Programme Coordinator, Dr Ruth Quaicoe said in addition to the shortage of equipment, the procurement process is flawed.

It was explained that often times, the incorrect equipment are bought while in other cases, priority is not given to the most important equipment during the procurement process.

“So guidance on equipment choice has to be given,” Dr Quaicoe said, while delivering an audiological report recently at the Regency Suites.

“Calibration of all equipment is still an issue. We still have to bring in an expert from the USA to do yearly calibration of all our equipment and this is a very costly venture,” she added. But she remains optimistic that Guyanese will soon be identified for calibration training and simultaneously, the procurement of tools for calibration.

Currently, there are 11 audiological clinics in Guyana, three in Region 10 and one each in Regions One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven and Nine.

These clinics focus on the identification, treatment and rehabilitation of hearing impairment and persons with balance problems. Additionally, they make ear impressions and ear moulds, fit, repair and service hearing aids, counsel parents and guardians and preach primary ear and hearing care.

But though the Health Ministry has been able to expand audiological services across the country, some departments are understaffed.

“Some regions have only one person, one audiology staff running the clinic. Far- flung regions are at a disadvantage in terms of getting ear impressions down to Georgetown and hearing aids and batteries up to the region, so the staff after a while gets lackadaisical and loose zeal,” she explained.

However, she anticipated that these problems will be addressed before the end of the year. By 2015, she said more attention would be given to far-flung communities.

Audiology in Guyana dates back to 1998 with the launching of the “Earcare 2000” Project. At the time, the project was sponsored by the Commonweath Society for the Deaf now known as Sound Seekers, in collaboration with the Health Ministry.

“Two British audiological scientists came to Guyana and set up the Central Audiology Clinic at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), the laboratories at the Ptolemy Reid Rehab Centre and satellite clinics in Linden and New Amsterdam,” Dr Quaicoe. At the time, those clinics were called satellite clinics because they were mandated to feed the central clinic at the GPHC.

But, the Coordinator said, clinics in Linden and New Amsterdam are earmarked for further development into fully-loaded clinics. She explained that they will be brought on par with the GPHC.

“The audiological service has come a long way since 1998. At that time, we had three staff members in GPHC Audiology Clinic who did outreach clinics to other regions in the country on a monthly basis, in Regions Three, Five, Six, Seven, Nine and 10,” she recalled.

After commencing training in 2001, the second batch of audiological practitioners graduated in 2003, paving the way for the third batch. With more practitioners being graduated, Dr Quaicoe said the service is on the rise.

“The audiological service now reaches further into Region Seven; we are reaching Kamarang and Kawalla. We already have a clinic in Bartica. We are also now further into Region Six, reaching Skeldon. We already have one clinic in New Amsterdam. We are now reaching Kwakwani in Region 10.”