The University of Cape Town invites you to an inaugural lecture by Professor Lebogang Ramma.

Topic: "Hearing the Call - Trading Epistemic Curiosity for Contextual Relevance in Audiology."

Professor Lebogang Ramma will share his experience regarding the challenges of trying to balance a research agenda informed mainly by academic interests versus the responsibility of generating basic knowledge that helps advance the field of audiology in South Africa and beyond. He will reflect on his research, teaching and social responsiveness work in relation to his area of interest: acquired hearing loss. He will also provide insight into his efforts to support the initiation and development of training programmes for audiologists in Africa.

About our speaker:

Lebogang Ramma is a Professor of Audiology at the University of Cape Town (UCT). He is recognised nationally for his work in the prevention of treatment-induced hearing loss (ototoxicity). He has led a national initiative to prevent treatment-induced hearing loss in patients undergoing treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis as well as a Health Professions Council of South Africa’s task team to develop contextually relevant guidelines for audiological management of patients who are on treatment that includes ototoxic drugs. A respected scholar, Professor Ramma was a key member of the curriculum review team in the Division of Communication Sciences and Disorders which led to the incorporation of public health principles into the audiology curriculum at UCT. In addition to his role as Professor of Audiology, Professor Ramma is active in other aspects of professional education and training in South Africa. He is the incumbent Chairperson of the Speech-Language and Hearing Board of the Health Professions Council of South Africa, and he chairs the Education, Training and Quality Assurance Committee of the Council. Furthermore, he is a member of the Institutional Audit Committee (IAC) of the Council on Higher Education (CHE). Internationally, he is a member of the International Ototoxicity Management Group (IOMG) and the World Health Organization’s World Hearing Forum. Professor Ramma is passionate about educating and training audiologists in Africa. He played a significant role in the development of the audiology programme at the University of Zimbabwe. He has also contributed to initiatives to develop audiology training in Botswana and Nigeria. Furthermore, he has contributed to the development of the National Ear and Hearing Plan in Zambia.