Hearing loss can impact all aspects and stages of life, both for the person themselves as well as their loved ones.
Social work is a profession that supports individuals, families, groups and communities to improve their wellbeing. At Hear and Say, our social work service helps to support individuals and families through a range of short and longer term situations – from parents struggling to deal with the news of their baby or child’s hearing loss diagnosis, or feelings of helplessness in their parenting or everyday life, or if they are experiencing domestic violence or trauma.
“At our core, social workers are committed to social justice, self-determination and human rights. Primarily, our role is to assist people who are overcoming personal difficulties and structural barriers to be included in society,” said Renu Bhalla, Hear and Say’s Clinical Social Worker.
“My role at Hear and Say is to provide guidance and support to the family. I work with the family system to identify their strengths and stressors and find ways to manage that.
“Often, parents need support to understand how certain life experiences, including trauma and domestic violence impacts young children. We talk about how parents can help their child heal or how parents can manage their child’s emotional tantrums or how the parents need to engage in some self-care- it really comes down to what the family needs.”
How can social work help?
- Assisting to identify and develop your strengths and resources
- Advocating for and referring to resources to support you and your family
- Support for issues related to child and family welfare, mental and physical health, poverty, unemployment, disability, homelessness, family violence and trauma
- Grief counselling and emotional support for families struggling with the news of hearing loss diagnosis.
“For Hear and Say families, your first step is to talk with your listening and spoken language specialist or audiologist, and ask for a referral to our social work service,” said Renu.
“An appointment will then be set up to discuss your situation, what those next steps could be, and to look at adding social work support to your NDIS plan if applicable.”
“As a social worker, I strongly believe in the need for connection; I value the need for children and parents to feel seen, heard, and valued. And it all starts with a conversation about what is going well for you and what could be better.”
For more information about how Hear and Say can support your family, please get in touch.
