News
Today is Close the Gap Day 2026. The day highlights the importance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities leading the way in closing the gap, exercising agency in self-determination and ensuring that ongoing reforms are directly informed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Community leadership drives real change, listening to lived experience strengthens policy, justice and equity are realised when community priorities are acted upon. Today on Close the Gap Day, we reiterate that Australia’s journey to health equity must be led and shaped by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
Why community voices matter in hearing health
Listening to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities is essential to providing culturally safe, respectful and effective hearing care. By engaging with and supporting community-led initiatives, audiologists and hearing health professionals can improve access to services and strengthen partnerships. Valuing community knowledge not only enriches care but also contributes to equitable health outcomes for all Australians.
Culturally responsive care is about recognising and respecting the lived experiences, histories and needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families while actively working to address systemic inequities in hearing health.
Advancing culturally responsive audiology
Training for culturally responsive care
To help close the gap in hearing health, Audiology Australia offers the “Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Families” training. This opportunity is part of our Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) initiatives and is designed to improve audiologist’s knowledge and skills to provide culturally safe and responsive care.
By completing this training, audiologists can:
- gain insight into the cultural context and health needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families
- build respectful, long-term relationships with communities
- improve communication and care, particularly for children facing early hearing challenges
- contribute to better health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
This resource is intended to help audiologists enhance their culturally responsive practice and positively impact hearing health equity.
Continuing the Innovate RAP
Audiology Australia has achieved significant milestones through its Reflect RAP, completing 100% of its initial deliverables. Building on this progress, the Innovate RAP was launched at the AudA 2025 Conference and will continue to guide our work through to 2027.
The Innovate RAP is centred on:
- strengthening partnerships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health organisations
- enhancing cultural safety across audiology practices
- collaborating with communities to achieve lasting, meaningful improvements in hearing health outcomes.
This next phase represents an ongoing commitment to embedding reconciliation, equity and community-led priorities at the heart of hearing health. It reflects our dedication to turning these principles into sustained, tangible action across the profession.
A call for collective action
The journey toward health equality requires agency, leadership and sustained reform. Audiology Australia invites all professionals to contribute by:
- participating in training such as the “Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Families” course
- supporting initiatives that strengthen hearing health equity
- collaborating with communities to co-create solutions that are culturally safe, effective, and sustainable.
By joining these efforts, audiologists and hearing health professionals can help turn the vision of justice, equality, and healing into reality.
Learn more about the training and resources available: https://audiology.asn.au/professional-development/training-in-culturally-responsive-care/
Visit the Close the Gap website: https://closethegap.org.au/