64 – Grommets, tonsils, poor sleep and more with ENT professor Kelvin Kong

Does your child struggle with poor sleep? Are they behind their peers with milestones? Or seeming to pick up every infection going around? If you have questions about ear, nose and throat health (or even if you don’t!) then today’s episode is for you.

We were honoured to interview the incredible and highly esteemed Professor Kelvin Kong – a proud Worimi man, otolaryngology, head and neck surgeon (in fact Australia’s first Indigenous surgeon), NAIDOC person of the year, wonderful father, and passionate advocate for improving the health outcomes for children and adults everywhere – and honestly, that introduction doesn’t even scratch the surface of the many amazing things that Kelvin does.

In this podcast we chat to Kelvin about:

• What an ENT doctor is and the common ailments seen in his practice
• Red flags when it comes to our child’s hearing that warrant further investigation
• The importance of early intervention and the disparity in care across the nation
• Whether it is true that antibiotics are not necessary for ear infections
• What are grommets, and when they are necessary
• What would warrant a tonsillectomy or adenoid removal for a child
• Whether we should be concerned about snoring or open mouth breathing
• The work Kelvin does in the community and the disparity in health outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities
• and so much more!

Today’s episode was brought to you by ergoPouch. We are long time fans of ergoPouch – every mum knows the level of stress when trying to decipher whether your child will be warm or cool enough (and wanting to PERFECTLY recreate the exact environment from that magical night of sleep you had once upon a time), so being able to take the guess work out of the equation is such a relief! ergoPouch make natural fibre, premium, ergonomically designed sleepwear and sleep solutions for babies and kids that are TOG-rated for warmth. The range spans Newborn to 6 years old, and is designed to take the guesswork out of dressing your child safely for sleep, no matter the temperature.