Key references

Home
- » Other health conditions
  - » Ear health (EarInfoNet)
    - » Publications
      - » Key references

Bibliography

References for the key publications about ear health and hearing among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are listed here.

2010

Darwin Otitis Guidelines Group (2010)

Recommendations for clinical care guidelines on the management of otitis media in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations.

Darwin: Menzies School of Health Research

The updated Recommendations for clinical care guidelines on the management of otitis media in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations builds on the 2001 guidelines using recent research and an explicit search and critical appraisal of the medical literature between 2001 and 2010. The original guidelines were directly linked to the Systematic review of existing evidence and primary care guidelines on the management of otitis media in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations.

The guidelines are intended for use by health care professionals who work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations. This includes Aboriginal health workers, Aboriginal ear health workers, primary care and specialist physicians, nurses, remote nurses and nurse practitioners, audiologists, audiometrists, speech therapists, and child development specialists (including advisory visiting teachers and teachers of the deaf).

The clinical care guidelines are published by Office for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health (OATSIH) and were prepared by the Darwin Otitis Guidelines Group in collaboration with the OATSIH Otitis Media Technical Advisory Group. They are designed to facilitate the delivery of comprehensive, effective and appropriate ear health programs.

The clinical care guidelines are divided into sections: prevention, diagnosis, prognosis, medical management, audiological management of associated hearing loss, practical considerations in health care delivery, and prioritisation of primary health care services in different settings. They aim to offer a series of clear recommendations for the clinical care of Indigenous Australians that are:

based on the best available evidence
acceptable to a multi-disciplinary expert panel experienced in this area
presented in plain language and algorithms.

The sources of information used include:

evidence-based clinical practice guidelines, evidence summaries and systematic reviews
high quality primary research on otitis media and hearing loss.

The following separate resources are also included:

what's new in the 2010 update of the clinical care guidelines - two page flyer
- a brief summary of the new features of the guidelines and the research and review processes that went into the new edition
- an outline of the aim, background, contents and use of the guidelines
practical treatment plans and prioritisation of primary health care services in different settings - four page brochure
- a brief introduction to otitis media (OM) and the sources of information on which the guidelines are based
- a summary of practical treatment plans for the management of childhood otitis media in populations at high risk of chronic otitis media (chronic suppuratives otitis media, CSOM)
- a snap shot of health care service priorities when working with limited resources
clinical care algorithms - eight laminated A4 sized cards
- algorithms graphing diagnosis and management of otitis media and hearing loss to assist with clinical care
pocket guide for the diagnosis and management of ear disease in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
- includes photographic and written description of the symptoms, diagnostic and management notes
- can be attached to a key ring or otoscope
key messages for primary health care providers - A3 sized poster
- a 10 point list of actions to remember when working with Indigenous families to treat and prevent otitis media in Indigenous children.

The practical treatment plan, pocket guide and algorithms are colour coded according to the type of otitis media allowing for quick cross referencing between the resources. All separate resources are also included within the bound guideline book.

Abstract adapted from Recommendations for clinical care guidelines on the management of otitis media in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations

Senate Community Affairs References Committee (2010)

Hear us: inquiry into hearing health in Australia.

Canberra: Parliament of Australia: Senate

2008

Couzos S, Metcalf S, Murray R (2008)

Ear health.

In: Couzos S, Murray R, eds. Aboriginal primary health care: an evidence-based approach. 3rd ed. South Melbourne: Oxford University Press: 308-354

Links
No links available.

2007

Gunasekera H, Knox S, Morris P, Britt H, McIntyre P, Craig J (2007)

The spectrum and management of otitis media in Australian Indigenous and non-Indigenous children: a national study.

Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal; 26(8): 689-692

2005

Couzos S, Lea T, Culbong M (2005)

"We are not just participants: we are in change": the NACCHO ear trial and the process for Aboriginal community-controlled health research.

Ethnicity & Health; 10(2): 91-111

Gibney KG, Morris PS, Carapetis JR, Skull SA, Smith-Vaughan HC, Stubbs E, Leach AJ (2005)

The clinical course of acute otitis media in high-risk Australian Aboriginal children: a longitudinal study.

BMC Pediatrics; 5

Retrieved from http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2431/5/16

Morris PS, Leach AJ, Silberberg P, Mellon G, Wilson C, Hamilton E, Beissbarth J (2005)

Otitis media in young Aboriginal children from remote communities in Northern and Central Australia: a cross-sectional survey.

BMC Pediatrics; 5: 27

Retrieved 5 April 2012 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2431-5-27

2003

Burrow S, Thomson N (2003)

Ear disease and hearing loss.

In: Thomson N, ed. The health of Indigenous Australians. South Melbourne: Oxford University Press: 247-272

Links
No links available.

Couzos S, Lea T, Mueller R, Murray R, Culbong M (2003)

Effectiveness of ototopical antibiotics for chronic suppurative otitis media in Aboriginal children: a community-based, multicentre, double-blind randomised controlled trial.

Medical Journal of Australia; 179(4): 185-190

Stuart J, Butt H, Walker P (2003)

The microbiology of glue ear in Australian Aboriginal children.

Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health; 39(9): 665-667

2001

National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (2001)

The management of middle ear infection in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations.

Canberra: Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care

This plain language summary of the Systematic review of existing evidence and primary care guidelines on the management of otitis media in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations has been prepared by the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO). The summary outlines in clear concise language the extent of middle ear disease in the Aboriginal population and the factors that contribute to its occurrence. The diagnosis of middle ear disease and the efficacy of primary and secondary preventive measures are considered. The discussion of primary prevention interventions looks at: changing risk factors, early treatment with antibiotics, and immunisation. Medical treatments and surgical interventions are outlined in the section on secondary prevention measures.

Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet abstract