About Us - Who Are We?
We are the Victorian branch of Better Hearing Australia (BHA) which is Australia’s largest consumer based organisation for people with hearing loss. BHA has branches across Australia that provide a range of services.
Registered charity
BHA (Vic) is a Victorian Charity registered with Community Services Victoria. The registered office is 5 High Street, Prahran, 3181.
Funding
BHA (Vic) Inc obtains funding from:
- Victorian Department of Human Services (government)
- philanthropic trusts
- membership
- volunteer support
- donations
- fund-raising.
Self-help and professional
The Victorian branch of Better Hearing Australia operates within two contexts:
- a self-help forum for Better Hearing Australia (Vic) members
- delivery of professional services by qualified staff.
Better Hearing Australia (Vic) started out as the Victorian Lip Readers Club, founded in 1932 as a self-help support group. In 1946 the organisation became the Victorian Branch of the Australian Association for Better Hearing with the emphasis on lip reading tuition continuing.
Under the new name of Better Hearing Australia (Vic) we became a strong self-help organisation focusing largely on self-help forums and classes led by committed, trained volunteers.
Today, as a result of changing lifestyles and developments in hearing technologies we have expanded the self-help model to provide professional services delivered by qualified staff to communities across Victoria.
State government funding has made this development possible and Better Hearing Australia (Vic) is obliged to operate in accordance with Department of Human Services requirements.
Professional services
Qualified health and education professionals provide independent, current information and advice on all aspects of hearing loss management plus advice on tinnitus and other ear/hearing pathologies. See the Services section of our site for more detailed information on what we can offer you.