Families whose children rely on publicly funded hearing services are facing longer journeys after the temporary closure of the Eastern Bay’s paediatric audiology clinic.

The service, which operated from Triton Hearing’s Whakatāne premises and sees about 700 patients each year, has served the Eastern Bay since 2018.

Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora says it is working to secure a new permanent location in Whakatāne.

“Paediatric audiology services in Whakatāne are being temporarily relocated after Triton Hearing moved from the premises where Health New Zealand provided audiology services,” Bay of Plenty group director operations Sarah Fenwick said.

“Health NZ is working to establish new premises for audiology services in the Eastern Bay, with steps under way to secure a permanent replacement facility in Whakatāne.”

In the meantime, families requiring appointments will need to travel to Tauranga.

Matahi Valley mother Deanna Te Pairi said her nine-year-old daughter, Bella-Rosina, visited the clinic a couple of times a month for hearing tests and hearing-aid checks.

“Already the closure has affected us because Bella-Rosina needs new moulds and what usually takes a day or two is going to take two weeks,” she said.

“Usually, it’s just to pick up a mould or a hearing aid and now I have to go all that way for one little thing.”

Te Pairi knows of other families in the area with children who rely on the clinic.

Whakatāne parent Kat Walsh-Paton, whose eight-year-old son Blake has hearing loss, said she was surprised there was no replacement location available in Whakatāne, and wondered whether a space could be provided at Whakatāne Hospital.

She received two weeks’ notice that Blake’s latest appointment had been moved to Tauranga.

“We had an hour-and-a-half appointment and got stuck in school traffic and end-of-day traffic in Tauranga,” she said.

She accepts the need to travel for longer appointments but questions whether the same trip is practical for shorter visits.

Fenwick said Health NZ was informed of the premises change in April and had been communicating with whānau ahead of scheduled appointments.

She acknowledged the inconvenience and said support was available through the National Travel Assistance programme to help with travel costs.

Walsh-Paton said the impact would be greatest on vulnerable families.

“This service is so important for supporting children’s health, education and social wellbeing. Hearing loss is a very isolating condition and carries impacts for the whole community if children are not adequately supported during such a critical period of their development.”

A support worker who assists deaf and hard-of-hearing students in Eastern Bay schools said some children required regular audiology visits and relied on support workers to attend appointments.

“Some of our students would never be able to get to audiology without our support,” the worker said.

They said delays in hearing assessments, hearing-aid repairs or replacement moulds could affect children’s learning.

“When a student isn’t wearing their hearing aids, they’re not in a good zone for learning. It’s like going to work without your glasses.”

The support worker said they hoped a new Whakatāne location could be found quickly.