Newborn hearing screening
All babies born in Queensland, including home births, can access a newborn hearing screening. The screen is part of Queensland Health’s newborn care services to ensure every child reaches optimum speech and language development. Ideally the hearing screen will be done in hospital, or within 1-2 weeks of birth.
Screening is free for babies eligible/or enrolled for an Australian Medicare card. Non-Medicare eligible families must have finalised payment in full for delivery and postnatal care for the baby to access the hearing screen.
Newborn screening hospitals
Contact your local maternity hospital for more information about screening your newborn while in hospital or to arrange an outpatient screening appointment. For home birthed babies, discuss referral to appropriate service with your midwife.
Outpatient screenings
If your baby was not born in Queensland but your family moved to Queensland shortly after the birth, your baby can be referred for a hearing screen by the screening team in their state of birth. You can also contact your local birthing hospital or Healthy Hearing head office team to arrange a screen.
What does the screening involve?
The non-invasive screening process is performed by a specialised trained nurse with a parent’s consent.
Several small pads are placed gently on your baby’s head and a soft earphone is lightly placed over each ear. Soft clicking sounds will then play into your baby’s ears and their responses to these sounds are recorded. The result is known immediately and will be either a ‘pass’ or a ’refer’.
A PASS result indicates that your baby hears at levels required for normal speech and language development at the time of the screen, but hearing can change. It is important to monitor using the hearing and speech checklist in ‘Your baby’s hearing screen brochure’ and discuss any concerns with your GP.
If your baby receives a refer result, they will need to have a second screening test. A ‘refer’ result can be caused by a number of things:
- your baby was unsettled during the screen
- there may have been background noise during the screen
- your baby may have fluid or a temporary blockage in the ear after birth
- a small number of babies may have a temporary or permanent hearing loss. The degree of loss can vary from mild through to profound.
If the second test also returns a refer result, they will be referred to an audiologist for further tests. Our brochure ‘Your baby’s audiology hearing test’ explains why your baby has been referred and the next steps.
The screening nurse will record the results in your baby’s Personal Health Record. Ask questions if there is anything you are not sure of.
A small number of babies may pass the screen, but have known risk factors for types of hearing loss which take longer to appear. If this is the case, your baby will be offered a hearing test with an audiologist sometime before their first birthday.
The timing of this test will depend on your child’s specific needs. While very few babies with these risk factors will develop a hearing loss, it is important to ensure your baby has their test.
Please note: If your baby is diagnosed with a hearing loss, the Healthy Hearing program provides additional services, including a medical investigation, support services and early intervention to help you and your child reach their full potential.
Hospital | Telephone |
---|---|
Atherton Hospital | 07 4091 0211 |
Ayr Hospital | 07 4783 0855 |
Bowen Hospital | 07 4786 8247 |
Cairns Base Hospital | 07 4226 0000 |
Cairns Private Hospital | 07 4052 5200 |
Charters Towers Hospital | 07 4787 0333 |
Cooktown Hospital | 07 4043 0100 |
Ingham Hospital | 07 4720 3000 |
Innisfail Hospital | 07 4016 1411 |
Mareeba Hospital | 07 4092 9333 |
Mackay Base Hospital | 07 4885 6000 |
Mater Private Hospital, Townsville | 07 4722 8867 |
Moranbah Hospital | 07 4941 4600 |
Mt Isa Hospital | 07 4744 4444 |
Palm Island (Joyce Palmer Health Service) | 07 4752 5100 |
Proserpine Hospital | 07 4813 9400 |
Thursday Island Hospital | 07 4069 0200 |
The Townsville Hospital | 07 4433 2995 |
Tully Hospital | 07 4068 4144 |
Hospital | Telephone |
---|---|
Biloela Hospital | 07 4992 7000 |
Buderim Private Hospital | 07 3068 2385 |
Bundaberg Hospital | 07 4303 8410 |
Caboolture Hospital | 07 5433 8629 |
Capricorn Coast Community Health | 07 4913 3000 |
Emerald Hospital | 07 4987 9523 |
Gladstone Hospital | 07 4976 3528 |
Gympie Hospital | 07 5489 8724 |
Hervey Bay Hospital | 07 4325 6820 |
Longreach Hospital | 07 4658 4740 |
Mater Private Hospital, Rockhampton | 07 4931 3380 |
North West Private Hospital | 07 3353 7825 |
Redcliffe Hospital | 07 3883 7508 |
Rockhampton Hospital | 07 4920 6288 |
Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital | 07 3646 1484 |
Sunshine Coast University Hospital | 07 5202 3799 |
Wesley Private Hospital Brisbane | 07 3232 7256 |
Woorabinda Community Health | 07 4913 2800 |
Hospital | Telephone |
---|---|
Beaudesert Hospital | 07 5541 9170 |
Charleville Hospital | 07 4650 5000 |
Dalby Hospital | 07 4669 0525 |
Gold Coast University Hospital (Public) | 07 5687 3508 |
Gold Coast University Private Hospital | 07 5530 0726 |
Goondiwindi Hospital | 07 4671 6666 |
Greenslopes Private Hospital | 07 3394 7900 |
Ipswich Hospital | 07 3810 1134 |
John Flynn Private Hospital, Gold Coast | 07 5598 9040 |
Kingaroy Hospital | 07 4162 9292 |
Logan Hospital | 07 3299 9153 |
Mater Mother’s Public Hospital | 07 3163 8892 |
Mater Mother’s Private Hospital, South Brisbane | 07 3163 8892 |
Mater Private Hospital, Redlands | 07 3163 7343 |
Pindara Private Hospital, Gold Coast | 07 5588 9401 |
Redland Hospital | 07 3488 3444 |
Roma Hospital | 07 4624 2736 |
St Andrew’s Private Hospital, Ipswich | 07 3816 9360 |
St George Hospital | 07 4620 2222 |
St Vincent’s Private Hospital, Toowoomba | 07 4690 4131 |
Stanthorpe Hospital | 07 4681 5201 |
Sunnybank Private Hospital | 07 3344 9308 |
Toowoomba Hospital | 07 4616 6208 |
Warwick Hospital | 07 4660 3831 |