ArticleHuman resources for health2020
Sustainable workforce: South African Audiologists and Speech Therapists.
Article in Human resources for health, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 88 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
88 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- In pursuit of increasing the application of tele-audiology in South Africa: COVID-19 puts on the alert for patient site facilitator training.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2022Pooled it
- Artificial intelligence and hearing health: a global evidence review of biases and equity implications for Africa.Global health action · 2026Review
- Views and reported practices of South African speech-language therapy and audiology undergraduate students on linguistic and cultural integration in training.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Status and gaps in newborn hearing screening in South Africa: A cross-sectoral review.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2026Article
- Exploring the professional quality of life of South African audiologists.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2026Article
- Decolonising audiology education: Epistemic barriers and opportunities for Black African students.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2026Article
- Patient Perceptions of Delays in Audiology Services in Johannesburg: A Secondary Analysis of Waiting Times and Alternative Service Models.Journal of evaluation in clinical practice · 2026Article
- South African speech-language therapists' perceived competencies and use of Makaton.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2026Article
- A narrative review on cost considerations in early intervention for deaf and/or hard-of-hearing children in Africa.Health policy and planning · 2026Review
- Speech-language therapy in Kenya: An overview of practitioners, practices and professional needs.African journal of disability · 2026Article
- Can you escape rehab? Theoretical and design foundations of an online escape room for speech-language pathology students.The South African journal of physiotherapy · 2026Article
- Article
- Third-party disability: An analysis of speech-language therapists' experiences in adult dysphagia management in South Africa.African journal of disability · 2026Article
- Factors influencing the professional quality of life in South African audiologists.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- A descriptive cost comparison of Listening and Spoken Language - South Africa versus traditional Speech-Language Therapy as therapeutic approaches for deaf and hard-of-hearing children in South Africa.Journal of public health in Africa · 2026Article
- Hearing healthcare for all? Investigating accessibility of public audiology services in Johannesburg, South Africa.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Perceived readiness of South African community service speech-language therapists to manage complex paediatric dysphagia.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2025Article
- From delay to detection: Dysphagia patterns in tracheostomised ICU patients in South Africa.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2025Article
- Reliability of nurse-administered infant hearing screening using otoacoustic emissions.The South African journal of communication disorders = Die Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir Kommunikasieafwykings · 2025Article
- National Health Insurance - knowledge, attitude and perceptions of speech-language therapists.African journal of primary health care & family medicine · 2025Article
28 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAudiologists and Speech Therapists play a vital role in addressing sustainable development goals by supporting people who are marginalised due to communication challenges. The global burden of disease and poor social living conditions impact negatively on the development of healthy communication, therefore requiring the services of Audiologist and Speech therapists. Against this background, we examined the demographic profile and the supply, need and shortfall of Audiologists and Speech Therapists in South Africa.
methodsThe data set was drawn from the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) registers (for 2002-2017) for the speech, language and hearing professions. This demographic profile of the professions was created based on the category of health personnel; category of practice, geographical location, population group (race) and sex. The annual supply was estimated from the HPCSA database while the service-target approach was used to estimate need. Additional need based on National Health Insurance Bill was also included. Supply-need gaps were forecast according to three scenarios, which varied according to the future intensity of policy intervention to increase occupancy of training places: 'best guess' (no intervention), 'optimistic' (feasible intervention), and 'aspirational' (significant intervention) scenarios up to 2030.
resultsMost (i.e. 1548, 47.4%) of the professionals are registered as Audiologists and Speech Therapists, followed by 33.5% registered as Speech Therapists and 19.1% registered as Audiologists. Around 88.5% professionals registered as Audiologists and Speech Therapists are practising independently, and 42.6% are practising in the Gauteng province. The profession is comprised majorly of women (94.6%), and in terms of the population groups (race), they are mainly classified as white (59.7%). In 2017, in best guess scenario, there is a supply-need gap of around 2800 professionals. In the absence of any intervention to increase supply capacity, this shortfall will remain same by the year 2030. By contrast, in aspirational scenario, i.e. supply is increased by 300%, the forecasted shortfall for 2030 reduces to 2300 from 2800 professionals.
conclusionsIt is clear that without significant interventions, South Africa is likely to have a critical shortfall of Audiologists and Speech Therapists in 2030. Policy-makers will have to carefully examine issues surrounding the current framework regulating training of these and associated professionals, in order to respond adequately to future requirements.
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