BAA Board Elections 2024

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
I wish to join this Board to increase the level of engagement between the profession in Scotland and our colleagues elsewhere in the United Kingdom recognising the differences between the 4 NHS systems but at the same time the importance of working collaboratively to ensure the profession’s voice is as strong as possible and heard.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
With more than 30 years background within the Audiology world I can offer a range of experience from working within the public health NHS Audiology system in Scotland to having worked in the Audiology Industry. In addition to being a qualified and practiced Audiologist, I have for the last 20+ years worked as a Head of Service where I have also undertaken part time secondment opportunities with our Government in Scotland and served as a Non-Executive Director on our local Health Board. Over the years I have chaired, led and participated in many pieces of work that have been both important and influential to the profession not least of all being a key participant in the design and development of quality standards for Scottish & Welsh Audiology and more recently as a chair of one of the subgroups that delivered the National Independent Review of Audiology Services in Scotland.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
I’m passionate about training Audiologists to be better clinicians, and initiatives to recruit Audiologists to this brilliant profession. In my current role as a clinical trainer for Interacoustics, I have the pleasure of meeting and training many Audiologists working in different sectors of the profession, and all value the opportunity to develop their clinical skills. Offering a clear pathway to progression is the best way to ensure retention of staff and attract the next generation into the profession. Both recruitment and retention are issues for the Audiology profession currently. I would like to join the BAA Board to lend my experience and ideas to these pressing questions. The BAA already has some excellent training and recruitment initiatives in place, the HTS being a great example. I feel joining would be an excellent way to expand my knowledge in this area of Audiology and contribute to the challenges of the future.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
I was an Audiologist in the NHS for over a decade, specialising in paediatrics. During this time I ran a peer review group in VRA. I have direct experience in chairing service improvement initiatives and good knowledge of what NHS services perform well at, and what challenges faced by services. In addition to my NHS work, I have spent a year working as an Audiologist in Zambia for Soundseekers. I was the sole on-site Audiologist, starting a paediatric service from scratch, including training of local nurses in Audiology. This was a real service development and training challenge and will be valuable experience I could bring to a BAA board role. In my current role as clinical trainer for Interacoustics, I have rapidly improved as an educator and Audiologist, building my knowledge in areas of Audiology I didn’t routinely practice in. I can bring this well-rounded experience to the BAA board.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
I am a registered Advanced Audiology Practitioner with 35 years’ experience working in various fields of Audiology in the NHS. Currently I am the Head of Audiology for Hywel Dda University Health Board in West Wales. Having worked in England and Wales I feel I have appropriate experience to support and represent my colleagues and am keen to join the BAA Committee. This application is supported by my fellow Heads of Service in Wales. In recent years I have become more involved in accreditation and service improvement and worked as an IQIPS Assessment Manager for the United Kingdom Accreditation Service and continue to be a peer assessor. I have been involved in accreditation and Welsh Quality Standards, both of which ensure services are patient-centred, safe, equitable and effective. Within Wales, I am the current chair of the Audiology Standing Scientific Advisory Group and sit on the Welsh Scientific Advisory Committee.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
My career started as a student Audiologist in 1987 at Southend Hospital in Essex where I completed the BTEC in MPPM, BAAT parts 1 and 2 and obtained an MSc from University College London. I have subsequently worked in Cambridge and in Swindon. I have been an assessor for the BAA practical examinations and subsequently worked with Bristol University as a Senior Assessor for the BSc final clinical examinations. I was involvement in the development of the NVQ level 3 in Audiology and recently acted as an external exam verified for Aston University. Clinically, my focus has included both adult and paediatric Audiology, tinnitus, student mentoring and quality assurance. I now specialise in supporting people with tinnitus, hyperacusis and listening difficulties. My passion is to ensure that we continue to develop and nurture professionals who will provide and support Audiology as a profession, whatever their background, for the future generations.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
Being a Board member will allow me to play my part informing strategies which will shape Audiology in the UK. As Head of Service, I am acutely aware that Audiology faces several challenges requiring direction and leadership from the BAA if we are to have a service and practices fit to address these issues. I want to be active in addressing the problems of recruitment and retention of Audiologists, departmental variances in the quality and delivery of services, set against a background of insufficient public sector funding. Committee membership will give me a greater platform from which to promote Audiology and building on many of our strengths as a profession such as regional groups, sharing best practices, continual professional development. Promoting membership of BAA, the education of Audiologists and supporting them during their professional life, contributes to ensuring we have profession fit to meet the current and future challenges.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
I am a highly motivated individual with a passion for delivering evidence-based practice and the provision of high standards of person-centred patient care in audiology. I have over 27-years of experience as an Audiologist in the NHS, working in both adult and paediatric services. Between 2016 and 2022 I was Deputy Clinical Director for the Audiology undergraduate and postgraduate programmes at the University of Manchester, before leaving and taking up the role of Head of Audiology at Mid Cheshire NHS Foundation Trust. I believe this gives me a broad spread of skills and knowledge covering both academic and practical areas of Audiology. Through my role as BAA Northwest representative, I have developed links with Audiology departments throughout the Northwest. This has given me a clear overview and understanding of the challenges and factors influencing Audiology as a profession in terms of service provision now and looking towards the future.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:

Having been on BAA Board previously I am standing again because there is work still to do. The challenge that stays for me is how we work together with other professionals and Audiologists working across every location in the U.K. whilst supporting a focus on quality care. My specialism is adult hearing rehabilitation. I am passionate that adults need to be able to access NHS hearing care, and places like my own independent audiology practice should look to ambitious standards and offer choices for patients seeking quality care outside the NHS. I want BAA to stand for me, but BAA has work to do to develop more relevant representation for audiologists working in private community settings and I would like to be part of that.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
Having worked as an Audiologist in many different settings for the last 34 years I have a lot of varied experience to offer BAA Board and members. I was a member of BAA Board for 10 years which included being President for two years. The experience I had on Board previously gives me a good understanding of the amount of work the volunteers on Board carry out for members. I’ve worked both nationally and internationally and have a broad understanding of the varied roles within our profession. I am comfortable speaking publicly about audiology and happy to articulate the BAA message at any level during meetings and events.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
I believe that over the next 10 years we will potentially see more change to the profession than we have in the previous 50 years, challenges in workforce, improvements in technology such as AI and the emergence of disruptive services will all need to be faced into. I believe we should be not only at the heart of any changes faced but should be leading to ensure that evidence based clinician led services are central to that future. The BAA must have a strong voice and appeal to all Audiologists no matter the sector, which is why I would like to join the board.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
I have worked in various roles in Audiology over the last 35 years in both a public and private setting, including international based roles that have given me great insight into different models and services. Through my work in manufacturing I have been able to understand the role technology has currently and can play in our profession. As a member of the Specsavers Audiology board with the remit to support and develop clinical standards including IQIPS, which includes working with regulatory and governing bodies, I feel that I can add to the diversity of the board. Additionally I have been part of the BAA Standards & Quality Committee for the past 3 years which has enabled me to understand the requirements we have for meeting and improving quality of service delivery.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
Having been a board member for 3 years I am keen to continue working with the board and seeing through some of the work that has been started whilst I have been involved. The issues with quality in paediatric audiology and the specialism wide workforce shortages are areas that I am passionate about and align with the strategic objectives of the BAA board. I consider these challenges critical for our entire profession not only now but in the future and I feel like my ability to positively influence and contribute to these areas will be greater when doing so as a BAA board member.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
I am the clinical lead of the largest paediatric service in the UK, chair the London heads of service network and act as a regional SME for London. Through these roles I am well cited on the challenges facing our profession both from the perspective of a frontline clinical service and from a regional strategic perspective and I feel that this range of insight can be valuable in supporting BAA to support the profession. I have worked on a number of National pieces of work both wearing a BAA hat and a personal/professional hat so have a sound understand of the political landscape in which BAA operates whilst having also built and developing relationships with senior colleagues with key stakeholders in which BAA will continue to work.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
Audiology is facing incredible challenges with its workforce. The growing demand for qualified audiologists and Hearing aid dispensers is struggling to be met. The higher education institutes (HEIs) are equally facing challenges and there is a gradual erosion of people training in audiology and choosing other health careers. Central to this are our existing students – both undergraduates and postgraduates – are we as a profession, doing enough to develop them? I am aware that there are growing concerns from clinical departments on audiology training and there does need to be a reconnection of all stakeholders and this is why I am putting myself forward to join the BAA Board – to lead on taking a new and progressive approach and to start developing and implementing a strategy to meet the challenges we are now facing.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
Prior to academia my clinical experience included a range of areas: adult rehabilitation, Paediatrics, Diagnostics and Vestibular, across several NHS trusts. I have been a volunteer for the BAA and prior to the academy the BAAS. I was and HTS member when the scheme began and involved with its development. My role was to also inspect departments across the UK which has given me an insight into the regional nuances. For the last 20 years, I have been an academic and for more 10 years I have been the head of the Audiology department at De Montfort University. I have been the chair of the HEIs in Audiology foRum with PTP (HARP) since its inception, some 10 years ago and have a track record of delivering change . I have experience in holding various positions in committees, both in education but also professional standards and service development.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
I would love to join the BAA Board as I am passionate about improving Audiology services, and in turn improving the lives of those with hearing loss. I am an advocate for equality and would love to help to drive British Audiology services to be the best that they can be. We need to learn from the past and ensure we improve things for the future. I feel that I have reached a point in my career where I have the skills and experience to make a real contribution to a board of like-minded professionals.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
Following my MSc in Audiology at The University of Manchester, I completed my CAC in Birmingham and became a State Registered Clinical Scientist in 2011. I have spent most of my career specialising in Cochlear Implants and the profound hearing loss population. In more recent years I have expanded my knowledge to other implantable solutions such a bone conduction and middle ear implants. I have experience working for both the NHS and as a Clinical Specialist for an implantable device manufacturer. I would be delighted to bring and share my knowledge with the BAA Board.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
I believe the role of the BAA in supporting audiology services nationally is more important than ever and I would love to be involved in helping to offer that support. I am passionate about provision of audiology services being available free at the point of delivery for all and would work with the BAA to continue to ensure this point continues to be made ensuring the ongoing enormous benefit to both our patients and the NHS as a whole as it benefits from the cost saving associated with treating hearing chronic conditions. I am passionate about adult audiology and would love the opportunity to contribute at a national level to ensure learning from the national review of paediatrics continues to be applied across audiology services into adult care and help to support services as we work towards the very best level of care and quality assurance for our patients.

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
I have worked in NHS audiology for over 20 years and have experience across all adult services including routine, complex and vestibular. My role now includes many aspects of quality assurance, managing risk, ensuring quality and excellence whilst balancing this with the need for efficiency and cost saving (which is tough!). I have supported our paediatric team through the national review process thus far and have a strong sense of the current pressures on audiologists in all areas of services. I hope that I have learnt many skills throughout my career and as well as the practical aspects, have understood the need for empathy and kindness in leadership. As we continue through challenging times in audiology, I would love the opportunity to help support audiologists nationally with these values at the forefront.

In no more than 150 words, please state why you wish to join the BAA Board:
I wish to join for a few reasons: Firstly, I’ve heard this statement a few times: My passion for Audiology ‘oozes’ out of me. A simple statement to highlight why I’d like to be part of a brilliant team that can continue to develop the Audiology Sector. Secondly, I believe in fair representation in organisations of influence – especially when it comes to these organisations shaping practice from manufacturers, HCP’s and End-Users (more on that in my ‘skills and experience section’. Thirdly, I currently am a member of multiple organisations in the industry and these positive relationships can make a voice strong! With my ‘Audiology First’ outlook – I’d like to think that this approach can contribute to Audiology continuously improving and help to shape the needs that we must focus on. I also need to point out that, if accepted, rest assured, I will be Signia-Neutral!

In no more than 150 words, please detail any skills and experience you have that would make you a good choice for the BAA Board:
I have a few points to highlight here: Qualifications: BSc. and MSc/ 22 years of experience in the industry of which: 13 years in the NHS was mainly in paediatrics (including Head of Service and New-born Hearing Screening Lead) -4 years in the private industry has focused mainly on educational roles but also included a business development element -4 years in the manufacturing industry. As Head of Audiology for Signia UK and Ireland, this diverse experience helps me to focus on what is important across the different channels in the UK, namely Public Sector, Key Accounts and Independents. I have built a great network with local and international Key Opinion Leaders that all have one common goal: let’s make Audiology great! Thank you for your consideration, Julia.

The position of Board Director is open to all full members of the BAA. You can be nominated and seconded by full members, or you can self-nominate.

No.  However, being a member of the BAA board means you will be asked to represent your profession. You will be asked to give your opinion on various professional matters, and will be expected to work strategically within the team to develop professional standards now and into the future. For this reason, the position of Board Director will probably be most appropriate to those who have a senior role within Audiology and have some managerial or other committee experience. However, all members of the BAA are eligible to be nominated, and if you feel you could contribute, you are welcome to apply.

There is an all-day Board meeting 4 times a year, and the full Board also attends the Conference where we have the Annual General Meeting. In addition, you will be expected to complete work with any BAA teams or committees you are involved with. You need to ensure that you can obtain leave from work commitments to attend meetings.

Most Board Directors are responsible for a committee of volunteers who work on specific projects in that specific area of work.

No.  Only the President position is financially covered for one day a week, with BAA ‘buying’ their time from their work placement. The other Board Directors do not get paid for their work, although travel expenses are covered.

A term of office lasts three years. Directors then have the option to stand for a second term of three years.

There are various teams that Board Directors either chair or participate in.  Job descriptions for each of the Board roles will soon be available on the BAA website. Here is the generic Board Director Job Description

Further, the Directors are asked to review and comment on documents and policies generated within the BAA and by external bodies. Board Directors may be involved in ad-hoc working groups, depending on their specific interests and talents.

Board Directors will also be expected to represent BAA on external groups in Audiology, as requested by the President.

The profession needs strong leaders to take it forward. By being a Board Director, you can influence the direction of your profession in the future. Board Directors are the front line of information coming into the profession. This information is key to decision-making within your own practice.

Membership of the Board gives the opportunity to work at a strategic level to advance the profile of Audiology Professionals within the United Kingdom. We want people passionate, dedicated and ready to take the next step forward, no matter where you are in your career or practice. It is also worth noting that future vice-presidents and presidents are elected from within the board.

We recognise the diversity in our profession’s workforce and would like to encourage applicants from all backgrounds to better reflect this diversity.

We are also keen to have nominations from across the four home nations, to ensure appropriate geographical representation.

No…not all the time.