Associate Professor Valerie Sung has worked at the RCH since 2001. She has a passion for caring for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.

Her research on childhood hearing loss is proudly supported by the Good Friday Appeal. To recognise her work in the lead up to the Good Friday Appeal, we spoke to Valerie about what it’s like caring for children with hearing loss.

Tells us about yourself and your role at RCH.

I am a general paediatrician interested in looking after deaf and hard-of-hearing children and families with crying babies. I started at the RCH in 2001 as a junior doctor. I currently work in the Caring for Hearing In Children (CHIC) clinic and the Unsettled Babies Clinic in the Centre for Community Child Health. I am also a Clinician Scientist Fellow at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute.

I am passionate about finding ways to make sure deaf and hard-of-hearing children reach their full developmental potential while also helping their families and those with crying babies cope with the day-to-day challenges. My research aims to improve the lives of children and families I work with and answer the myriads of unanswered questions they face. I am also passionate about improving health systems and driving quality of care by using the information we routinely collect during clinical care.

Can you tell us more about childhood hearing loss and its impact on children and their families?

Permanent hearing loss affects around two out of 1,000 newborns and approximately 10 per cent of school-aged children. It is the most common condition screened for at birth.

Thanks to the Victorian Infant Hearing Screening Program (VISHP), which is run by staff from the RCH, more than 99 per cent of newborns in Victoria receive a hearing screen at their birthing hospital. This screening enables early detection of hearing loss in babies. They can then access hearing aids, early intervention and, for some, cochlear implantation in the first few months of life.

However, many deaf and hard-of-hearing children will still face significant challenges despite the early detection and intervention. Many will struggle with their development, including communication, learning and social skills, and experience complex medical problems.

There are still many fundamental questions these families have that we may not be able to answer at the time of diagnosis. For example, why does my child have hearing loss? Will the hearing loss progress, and can we stop it from happening? Or commonly, what will happen to my child in the future? My research aims to answer these questions and find ways to improve the quality of life for these children and their families.

What’s a challenge you’ve had to overcome to get where you are today?

The biggest challenge has been getting consistent research funding. Doing research is tough, and it can be disheartening when you’re knocked back from a grant you’ve applied for.

It is a huge task to get sustainable funding to keep the research going and staff employed. Thanks to the Good Friday Appeal, one of our research studies, the Victorian Childhood Hearing Longitudinal Databank (VicCHILD), received start-up funding. We now have more than 1,100 families participating in our study – one of the biggest of its kind in the world. We hope VicCHILD will be able to continue through further grant applications and donations in the future.

Tell us about your favourite hobby.

I have a few favourite hobbies! I love swimming. Once I’m in the water, my mind relaxes, and I am immersed in my own world away from the buzz of everyday life.

I also love cycling – 14 years ago, I followed parts of the Tour de France on my bike – I can’t do that anymore as I’ve lost fitness since having kids, but I would love to be able to do it again!

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If you’d like to donate to the Good Friday Appeal, you can donate online, any time, at www.goodfridayappeal.com.au/donate/