1. Paediatric audiology Priorities for 2008/09
Susan Daniels
Chief Executive

2. Services must reflect and be consistent with the “Every Child Matters” agenda The policy set out in “Aiming High for Disabled Children” (in particular the core offer), must be applied to paediatric audiology services

3. Paediatric Audiology Services
5 priorities for deaf children and their families

4. Information a) Provision
Provision of clear information on entitlements and standard of service
Signposting to other sources of advice and help
Provision of information on local performance of services to enable service users to benchmark the quality of provision in their area

5. 1) Information b) Gathering
Involvement of parents, children and young people in planning and shaping local services and moving them towards a truly family friendly provision as defined by the users themselves
Quality Assurance programme to ensure quality standards are embedded and impact on practice

6. 2) Waiting times
What should be the average waiting time for children from referral to the fitting of a hearing aid?
Impact of prioritisation of babies on waiting times for older children
Variation of performance between PCT’s
Collection and publication of data by PCT area

7. 3) NHSP in London
Particular problems of low quality and coverage rates in some parts of London
London Moving Forward set out proposals for addressing the problems but there has been limited progress in implementing them

8. 4) Cochlear Implants Ensuring access and availability
Ensuring clarity about bilateral implantation for children
Developing quality standards for CI Centres

9. 5)Training of paediatric audiologists
Higher level training modules are not being accessed because of funding shortfalls
Most audiologists are not covered by the Health Professional Council
Mandatory CPD is required by HPC

10. According to families and users of paediatric audiology services, they have yet to see much improvement at local level that suggests deaf children’s experiences are at the heart of the Every Child Matters Agenda

11. NDCS urges the Department of Health to take action on the 5 main areas detailed here