At the parliamentary morning tea, from left, patient advocate Ben Hale, chair of Head and Neck Cancer Australia (HANCA) and ASOHNS member, surgeon Dr Matthew Magarey, HANCA CEO Nadia Rosin, patient advocate Tracey David, anaplastologist Sophie Fleming and patient advocate Chris Sequeira. Image: ASOHNS....
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✦ The floor
Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
No actionable change to clinical practice; this is a policy advocacy update that audiologists and allied clinicians in Australia may wish to monitor for potential impact on patient access to prosthetic funding.
Government funding for external facial prosthetics would significantly improve access and quality of life for head and neck cancer survivors, a population audiologists frequently encounter given associated hearing rehabilitation needs.
- 01Head and Neck Cancer Australia (HANCA) lobbied Australian parliament for a dedicated External Facial Prosthetic Funding Scheme.
- 02The delegation included patient advocates, surgeons, and an anaplastologist (a specialist who creates facial prosthetics).
- 03No government funding scheme for external facial prosthetics currently exists in Australia.
- 04The advocacy effort highlights the financial burden faced by head and neck cancer survivors needing prosthetic rehabilitation.
- 05Outcome of the lobbying effort and any legislative response is not yet known.
There is currently no government-funded External Facial Prosthetic Funding Scheme in Australia.
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