Overview
Background
My research concerns i) understanding causes and impacts of hearing impairment, particularly in the context of multimorbidity in older age, ii) prevention and treatment of hearing impairment, and iii) hearing service development and evaluation. My research involves epidemiological modelling with population data sets, clinical trials and hearing health policy. I have authored over130 publications in peer reviewed journals and books, and I frequently present invited and keynote addresses at international conferences. I have received the British Society of Audiology’s TS Littler prize for services to audiology and a prestigious US-UK Fulbright award.
I have been awarded 10 grants as principal investigator in the last 5 years totalling >AUD$14.5 million from competitive sources including the NHMRC, the NIHR, the Alzheimer’s Society UK, the European Commission, industry and charity funders. This funding includes an EU Horizon 2020 grant of €6.2 million (as joint PI for “Ears, Eyes and Mind: The “SENSE-Cog Project” to improve mental well-being for elderly Europeans with sensory impairment”), and two NHMRC Medical Research Future Fund awards ($1.2 million as CI for “SENSEcog aged care: Hearing and vision support to improve quality of life for people living with dementia in residential aged care”; AUD$1.3 million for "Home hearing and vision care to improve quality of life for people with dementia and carers"; and an AUD$0.9 million NHMRC targetted hearing research award (as CI for "Improving access to the hearing services program for people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds"). I have strong links with hearing industry partners and have received research funding (total >AUD$500,000) from major hearing aid companies Starkey, Oticon, Phonak and the hearing industry research consortium. I have a position at the University of Manchester with on-going involvement (as CI and co-I) in projects funded by the NIHR, the ESRC, the Alzheimer’s Society and the RNID.
Availability
- Professor Piers Dawes is:
- Available for supervision
Fields of research
Research interests
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Research interests
hearing loss; tinnitus, vision loss; assessment; dementia; healthy ageing; psychosocial interventions; mental well-being; aged care; health policy and ageing; public health; dementia; health inequalities; hearing screening
Research impacts
My research is widely cited in national and international guidelines & policy, including the 2016 US National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine report ‘Hearing Health Care for Adults: Priorities for Improving Access and Affordability’; the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance ‘Hearing Loss in adults: Assessment and management’; the Australian Parliamentary report on hearing loss ‘Still waiting to be heard’; the 2020 Lancet report on dementia prevention and care; and the WHO guidelines ‘Risk reduction of cognitive decline and dementia’. My research has global impact, including authorship of the first international guidelines on assessment and management of hearing/vision impairment for people with dementia and development and publication of alternative versions of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (internationally the most used cognitive screening test) for people with hearing or vision impairment.
My work on developing European networks for consumer and community involvement (CCI) of older adults with lived experience of hearing/vision and cognitive difficulties to inform multi-centre health research was identified for a keynote presentation to open the 2018 INVOLVE (the UK NIHR CCI organization) CCI conference and is cited as a gold standard example by the European INTERDEM initiative to guide integrated biomedical and psychosocial dementia research.
I am on the editorial board of Ear and Hearing, the International Journal of Audiology, and the Journal of Audiology & Otology. I am a peer reviewer for >30 journals, as well as the NHMRC, the NIHR, the ESRC, the MRC and the RNID. I represent the University of Queensland on the Hearing Health Sector Alliance and I am the chair of the Hearing Health Sector Alliance's aged care working group. I am on the Research Committee of the Deafness Foundation.
Works
Search Professor Piers Dawes’s works on UQ eSpace
2026
Journal Article
Challenges and Opportunities to Support Communication and Reduce Background Noise in Long-Term Care
El-Saifi, Najwan, Meyer, Carly J., Rose, Naomi, Bail, Kasia, Browning, Colette, Cenin, Dayna R., Ferguson, Melanie, Heine, Chyrisse, Keay, Lisa, Kumaran, Sheela, Newall, John, Scanlan, Emma, Sohrabi, Hamid, Toomey, Melinda, Westbrook, Johanna and Dawes, Piers (2026). Challenges and Opportunities to Support Communication and Reduce Background Noise in Long-Term Care. Journal of Long-Term Care, 360-374. doi: 10.31389/jltc.576
2026
Conference Publication
Cultural responsiveness of hearing services
Mansoureh, Nickbakht and Dawes, Piers (2026). Cultural responsiveness of hearing services. UQ Applied Ageing Research Showcase, Brisbane, QLD, Australia, 16 September 2026.
2026
Journal Article
Effectiveness of cultural competency interventions to improve healthcare provider behaviour and care for ethnic minority patients - a systematic review and narrative synthesis
Kasthurisamy Soundararajan, Sathveeka, Pattanshetti, Suhani, Kelly, Ciara, Visram, Anisa, Verma, Arpana, Dawes, Piers and Armitage, Christopher J. (2026). Effectiveness of cultural competency interventions to improve healthcare provider behaviour and care for ethnic minority patients - a systematic review and narrative synthesis. Health Psychology Review, 1-23. doi: 10.1080/17437199.2026.2724952
2026
Journal Article
Vision, hearing, and dementia in older adults receiving home care services: implications for optometric practice
Toomey, Melinda, Gurteen, Helen, Franco, Bronwyn, Piano, Marianne, Keay, Lisa and Dawes, Piers (2026). Vision, hearing, and dementia in older adults receiving home care services: implications for optometric practice. Clinical and Experimental Optometry, 1-13. doi: 10.1080/08164622.2026.2704611
2026
Journal Article
Hearing, Vision, and Dual Sensory Impairment in Australian Long-Term Care: Prevalence and Impact
Dawes, Piers, El-Saifi, Najwan, Chicoteau, Antony and Gray, Leonard C. (2026). Hearing, Vision, and Dual Sensory Impairment in Australian Long-Term Care: Prevalence and Impact. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, 27 (8) 106303, 106303-106303. doi: 10.1016/j.jamda.2026.106303
2026
Journal Article
Rewarding yet challenging: factors influencing domiciliary optometry services in Australian long-term care communities
Kumaran, Sheela, Piano, Marianne, Choo, Zhilin, Liang, Marie, Dawes, Piers, Meyer, Carly, El-Saifi, Najwan, Anantharaman, Divya and Keay, Lisa (2026). Rewarding yet challenging: factors influencing domiciliary optometry services in Australian long-term care communities. Clinical and Experimental Optometry, 109 (7), 1-16. doi: 10.1080/08164622.2026.2695834
2026
Journal Article
Hearing loss in adults with diabetes and prediabetes: a systematic review and meta‐analysis
Nisar, Mehwish, Karatela, Shamshad, Rajagopal, Anjana, Ahmed, Beenish Nisar and Dawes, Piers (2026). Hearing loss in adults with diabetes and prediabetes: a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Diabetes/Metabolism Research and Reviews, 42 (5) e70195, 1-14. doi: 10.1002/dmrr.70195
2026
Journal Article
"We can make awful mistakes": exploring briefing and debriefing practices in hearing care appointments involving spoken language interpreters
Nisar, Mehwish, Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Orlando, Marc, Kruger, Jan-Louis, Timmer, Barbra, Hickson, Louise, Newall, John, Scarinci, Nerina and Dawes, Piers (2026). "We can make awful mistakes": exploring briefing and debriefing practices in hearing care appointments involving spoken language interpreters. International Journal of Audiology, 1-17. doi: 10.1080/14992027.2026.2675571
2026
Conference Publication
What is culturally responsive care and how to promote culturally responsive hearing services?
Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Dawes, Piers, Scarinci, Nerina, Newal, John, Nisar, Mehwish, Furze, Cailyn, Timmer, Barbra, Waite, Monique and Hickson, Louise (2026). What is culturally responsive care and how to promote culturally responsive hearing services?. 37th World Congress of Audiology, Seoul, South Korea, 24-27 May 2026.
2026
Conference Publication
Readability and accessibility of online information about hearing loss and hearing aids
Furze, Cailyn, Newall, John, Shi, Li, Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Dawes, Piers, Sharma, Mridula and Ching, Teresa (2026). Readability and accessibility of online information about hearing loss and hearing aids. 37th World Congress of Audiology 2026, Seoul, South Korea, 24-27 May 2026.
2026
Conference Publication
Understanding acceptability of hearing healthcare among culturally and linguistically diverse communities in Australia
Waite, Monique, Arora, Chandni, Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Furze, Cailyn, Armitage, Christopher, Scarinci, Nerina and Dawes, Piers (2026). Understanding acceptability of hearing healthcare among culturally and linguistically diverse communities in Australia. 37th World Congress of Audiology, Seoul, South Korea, 24-27 May 2026.
2026
Conference Publication
Prevalence, disparities and associated factors in hearing loss and hearing device uptake across diverse populations: a systematic review
de Silva, Dumini, Nisar, Mehwish, Dawes, Piers, Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Newall, John and Khan, Asaduzzaman (2026). Prevalence, disparities and associated factors in hearing loss and hearing device uptake across diverse populations: a systematic review. 37th World Congress of Audiology 2026, Seoul, South Korea, 24-27 May 2026.
2026
Conference Publication
Comparative analysis of clinical and developmental milestones in children with hearing loss from diverse ethnic communities in Australia
de Silva, Dumini, Dawes, Piers, Easwar, Viji, Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Newall, John and Khan, Asaduzzaman (2026). Comparative analysis of clinical and developmental milestones in children with hearing loss from diverse ethnic communities in Australia. 37th World Congress of Audiology 2026, Seoul, South Korea, 24-27 May 2026.
2026
Conference Publication
Interprofessional collaboration between hearing care
Dawes, Piers, Nisar, Mehwish, Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Orlando, Mark, Newall, John, Harris-Roxas, Ben, Hickson, Louise and Scarinci, Nerina (2026). Interprofessional collaboration between hearing care. 37th World Congress of Audiology 2026,, Seoul, South Korea, 24-27 May 2026.
2026
Journal Article
Working with spoken language interpreters: Strengthening clinician-interpreter collaboration for accessible hearing care
Nisar, Mehwish, Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Orlando, Marc, Scarinci, Nerina, Newall, John, Harris-Roxas, Ben, Hickson, Louise and Dawes, Piers (2026). Working with spoken language interpreters: Strengthening clinician-interpreter collaboration for accessible hearing care. Ear and Hearing. doi: 10.1097/aud.0000000000001845
2026
Journal Article
The ABCs of hearing and vision care in long-term care communities: a systematic review and behavioral systems map of actors, behaviors, and COM-B factors
Anantharaman, Divya, Meyer, Carly, Nisar, Mehwish, Kumaran, Sheela, Keay, Lisa, McAvoy, Sue and Dawes, Piers (2026). The ABCs of hearing and vision care in long-term care communities: a systematic review and behavioral systems map of actors, behaviors, and COM-B factors. The Gerontologist, 66 (5) gnag020, 1-20. doi: 10.1093/geront/gnag020
2026
Journal Article
Exploring the perceived barriers and facilitators for accessing audiology services in Malaysia by adults with hearing loss: a qualitative study using the COM-B model
Romli, Maziah, Anantharaman, Divya, Dawes, Piers and Timmer, Barbra H. B. (2026). Exploring the perceived barriers and facilitators for accessing audiology services in Malaysia by adults with hearing loss: a qualitative study using the COM-B model. Disability and Rehabilitation, 1-17. doi: 10.1080/09638288.2026.2658947
2026
Journal Article
Factors influencing the use of hearing services by diverse ethnic communities in Australia
Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Furze, Cailyn, Nisar, Mehwish, Waite, Monique, Scarinci, Nerina, Newall, John, Hickson, Louise, Armitage, Christopher J., Ching, Teresa Y. C. and Dawes, Piers (2025). Factors influencing the use of hearing services by diverse ethnic communities in Australia. Ear and Hearing, 47 (2), 363-377. doi: 10.1097/aud.0000000000001734
2026
Journal Article
Prevalence of hearing, vision and cognitive impairment and impact in older adults in home care: A study protocol
Toomey, Melinda, Wilson, Lana, Gurteen, Helen, Franco, Bronwyn, Bennett, Rebecca, Cenin, Dayna, El‐Saifi, Najwan, Ferguson, Melanie, Gu, Yuanyuan, Heine, Chyrisse, Keay, Lisa, Kumaran, Sheela, Lenzen, Sabrina, Leroi, Iracema, Lowthian, Judy A., Meyer, Carly, Mitchell, Leander, Newall, John, Pachana, Nancy A., Piano, Marianne, Raichand, Smriti, Scanlan, Emma, Sohrabi, Hamid and Dawes, Piers (2026). Prevalence of hearing, vision and cognitive impairment and impact in older adults in home care: A study protocol. Health Expectations, 29 (2) e70613, 1-11. doi: 10.1111/hex.70613
2026
Conference Publication
Culturally responsive care: practical actions for health professionals
Nickbakht, Mansoureh, Nisar, Mehwish, Furze, Cailyn, Scarinci, Nerina, Newall, John, Hickson, Louise, Timmer, Barbra, Armitage, Christopher J., Dib, Mayada and Dawes, Piers (2026). Culturally responsive care: practical actions for health professionals. A Culture of Care: Multicultural Health Symposium 2026, Brisbane, QLD Australia, 16-17 March 2026.
Funding
Current funding
Past funding
Supervision
Availability
- Professor Piers Dawes is:
- Available for supervision
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Supervision history
Current supervision
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Doctor Philosophy
Mapping the Systemic Complexity of Hearing and Vision Care in Australian Long-Term Care Communities
Principal Advisor
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Doctor Philosophy
Hearing health inequalities in culturally and linguistically diverse communities in Australia.
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Asaduzzaman Khan, Dr Mansoureh Nickbakht
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Doctor Philosophy
The Australian home care study: prevalence, recognition and treatment of hearing, vision and dementia among vulnerable older Australians
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Nancy Pachana
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Doctor Philosophy
Hearing Health Inequality in Australian Immigrants
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Nerina Scarinci
Completed supervision
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2026
Doctor Philosophy
Audiology services for adults in Malaysia: perspectives of clinicians and adults with hearing loss
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Barbra Timmer
Media
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