May 12, 2025
Catriona Viernes strikes a sassy pose for the camera. The six-year-old is playing better now with big sister Kirsten and with her classmates in kindergarten thanks to hearing aids and early intervention by her Alberta Health Services’ audiology team. Supplied.
Audiologist Surida Booysen enjoys working with children at Children’s Rehabilitation Services in Red Deer. It’s brought her joy to watch Catriona blossom socially and communicate better. The Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Program has been helping children and families across Alberta since 2018. Supplied.
Catriona Viernes’ family includes mom and dad Tsarevna and Mhon, and sister Kirsten, 10. “I’m very happy right now that she’s able to communicate, and that her social skills will be improving in the future,” says mom. “We’re definitely very happy with her hearing aids.” Supplied.
Story by Gregory Kennedy & Janine Poersch
RED DEER — Not so long ago, Tsarevna Viernes had to stand in front of her daughter Catriona to get her attention. The six-year-old largely kept to herself, barely played with her kindergarten classmates, and found conversations hard.
“Today she communicates easily, and answers back and forth,” says Viernes. “She’s now starting to play along with her classmates in school. Of course, with her diagnosis of autism, she’s still delayed in some ways, but I’m very happy right now that she’s able to communicate.”
Catriona’s remarkable turnaround can be traced to the caring Community Audiology team at Children’s Rehabilitation Services and one member in particular, Surida Booysen, an audiologist, who proved instrumental in helping her overcome hearing loss.
“Hearing forms the cornerstone for speech, language and social development,” says Booysen. “We have critical windows during a child’s development when each of these areas need to develop. If hearing isn’t available or accessible, it means the door to that area of development within the brain is closed. The sooner we know about a child’s hearing loss, the easier it is to intervene.”
Since 2018, newborn hearing screening is offered by Alberta’s Early Hearing Detection & Intervention (EHDI) Program. Hearing screening is free, quick and safe.
“This baseline tells us if a baby is born with normal hearing or not. Typical hearing from birth is a precondition for easy speech and language development.,” adds Booysen. “What makes Catriona’s story interesting and unique is that she passed her newborn hearing screening. In her case, her hearing loss developed over time.”
“Hearing can change at any time as children grow. Hearing loss is often gradual and mostly invisible. Families are always encouraged to reach out for testing if there’s any doubt about their child’s hearing. Viernes recalls how their journey for her daughter’s wellness has taken several years.
“It started when she was two years old. My husband Mhon and I are both registered nurses. Yet as a mother, I knew something was wrong. Catriona wasn’t really talking or paying attention to anything. Mhon said, ‘’I think we have to get her assessed. She’s not really communicating with us.’ After her first hearing test, we found out she has some hearing loss.”
At the time, Catriona received bilateral ear tubes — a procedure also known as bilateral myringotomy — which helps children who experience frequent ear infections or fluid buildup behind the eardrums. The surgery involves making small incisions in each eardrum, tiny ventilating tubes, typically made of plastic, are inserted to maintain the openings. This reduces infections and improves hearing.
Fast forward a couple of years to a routine hearing test after Catriona’s ear tubes had fallen out. It showed that Catriona experienced a mild permanent hearing loss, not related to middle ear problems. It is estimated that Catriona hears around 80 per cent of speech, which may sound good enough to many of us.
But, children need to hear a 100 per cent of speech, all the time, to learn easily. This mild hearing loss influenced Catriona’s communication and meant she spoke primarily in jargon, in very short phrases, and rarely stayed on topic. In short, she wasn’t ‘getting’ all of what was being said to her.
But this was about to change. Dramatically.
“When Surida (Booysen) came into her life, we got a perfect picture of what was really happening with Catriona’s hearing, and she got hearing aids last December,” says Viernes. “As parents, we’re able to talk to her now properly, because she can hear us better.”
Booysen adds: “We’re all thrilled with how she’s moving along, despite knowing that the autism is still there. Her parents agree, and her school is very happy with her. It’s amazing. Seeing her progress gives meaning to my day.
“We always consult with the family — and other healthcare professionals including a speech pathologist and an ear, nose and throat specialist — to find the way for a child to hear to the best of their potential. There are also different types of hearing technologies — the type chosen will depend on the child's unique hearing loss and listening needs.”
Booysen has seen how some parents can be reluctant to go through getting hearing technologies for a number of reasons, including the stigma around hearing aids (many still picture older devices that were awkward and visually obvious), a desire not to further ‘medicalize’ their child, or the time pressure of having to do more appointments. The bottom line is that the potential rewards for giving hearing technologies a try can be substantial and life-changing, even for children with ‘mild’ hearing loss.
“We’re definitely very happy with her hearing aids,” says Viernes, who also finds joy daily in watching how Catriona now enjoys more quality time with her big sister Kirsten, 10.
“Kirsten is also very happy now that they’re able to play together better. She can really talk to her sister. They like talking like normal kids now.
“They like to play the online game Roblox (a virtual universe that lets them create, share experiences with friends, and be anything they can imagine). They love to watch cartoons together, read books and play LEGO.
To learn more about hearing loss in children, visit MyHealth.Alberta.ca.
If your child has hearing loss, there are services to support you:
Hearing Loss in Children
