Colette McKay

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Colette McKay
Born
Australia
NationalityAustralian
Occupation(s)Audiologist, academic and researcher
TitleLeader in Translational Hearing Research at the Bionics Institute
Academic background
EducationBachelor of Science (Hons), physics and mathematics
Diploma of Audiology
Doctor of Philosophy
Alma materUniversity of Melbourne
ThesisThe Theory of Scattering from Complex, Energy Dependent Potentials, and Applications (1979)
Academic work
InstitutionsUniversity of Melbourne

University of Manchester Aston University

Bionics Institute
Websitehttps://www.bionicsinstitute.org/team-members/professor-colette-mckay/

Colette McKay FAHMS is an Australian audiologist, academic and researcher. She leads the translational hearing program at the Bionics Institute of Australia.

She holds honorary appointments at the University of Melbourne Department of Medical Bionics and Department of Otolaryngology.

Education[edit]

At 14, encouraged by her physics teacher, McKay wanted to become a nuclear phyicist.[1] She went on to complete a Bachelor of Science with Honours at the University of Melbourne followed by a PhD in Physics and Mathematics in 1979. She then undertook clinical training in audiology, completing a Graduate Diploma in Audiology in 1980.[2]

Research and career[edit]

McKay undertook research in the Department of Otolaryngology at the University of Melbourne from 1989 to 2004. Her research at this time focussed on psychophysics, speech perception and signal processing in cochlear implants.[3] She then took up the position of chair in Auditory Science at Aston University in Birmingham, England where she implemented an undergraduate degree in audiology.[3] In 2007 she was appointed chair in Applied Hearing Research at the University of Manchester, where she led the Audiology and Deafness Research Group.[4]

In 2013, McKay took up her current role as leader in translational hearing research at the bionics institute.[5] McKay's research team have developed a clinical tool called the EarGenie, which uses near-infrared light to measure how the brains of babies respond to sound.[6] The test will help clinicians determine the best interventions for babies born deaf or hard of hearing.[7]

McKay's work has resulted in six families of patents.[8]

Awards and honours[edit]

Elected Fellow of the Acoustical Society of America in 2002[3]

Thomas Simm Littler prize from the British Society of Audiology in 2009[3]

Awarded the 3-year veski innovation fellowship in 2013[5]

Elected Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences 2021[8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Colette McKay – veski announcement profile" (PDF). veski.org.au. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  2. ^ "Prof Colette McKay". findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
  3. ^ a b c d "Professor Colette McKay, Translational Hearing Research and Principal Scientist - Bionics Institute". www.bionicsinstitute.org. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
  4. ^ "History of Audiology". The University of Manchester. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  5. ^ a b "Colette McKay · veski". www.veski.org.au. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  6. ^ "EarGenie hearing test for babies - Bionics Institute". www.bionicsinstitute.org. 2022-04-27. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  7. ^ "Breakthrough invention assists treatment of deaf and hearing impaired newborns". www.9news.com.au. 2023-05-08. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
  8. ^ a b "Professor Colette McKay - AAHMS". aahms.org. 2022-05-16. Retrieved 2023-10-10.