Discipline of Audiology

BIOSKETCH
Ms Vuyelwa Zandile Peter is a Lecturer in Audiology within the School of Health Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), appointed under the New Generation of Academics Programme (nGAP). A dedicated clinician–scholar, she brings nearly two decades of clinical, administrative, and academic experience to the discipline of Audiology, with a particular commitment to advancing paediatric hearing health, communication disorders, and equitable access to rehabilitation services in South Africa. Ms Peter completed her Bachelor of Arts in Speech and Hearing Therapy at the University of the Witwatersrand, followed by a Master of Communication Pathology (Audiology) at UKZN. Her master’s research focused on “An audiological profile of school-aged children with HIV/AIDS at an antiretroviral clinic in KwaZulu-Natal,” establishing her early interest in paediatric HIV, hearing, and communication health. She is currently a PhD candidate in Audiology at UKZN, where her doctoral work expands on early childhood communication screening and community-engaged models for early detection of communication delays among preschool-aged children. Before entering academia, Ms Peter held several senior leadership roles in the public health sector. Notably, she became the first Black female Head of Department for Speech Therapy and Audiology at King Edward Hospital (2013–2017). Earlier, she served as Senior Speech Therapist and Audiologist at Addington Hospital. Her pioneering leadership extended to provincial task teams, where she played a central role in shaping ototoxicity monitoring protocols, early hearing detection and intervention strategies, assistive device specifications development, and mid-level worker training frameworks for the province of KwaZulu-Natal. At UKZN, she served as the first Black South African female Academic Leader for the Discipline of Speech-Language Pathology (2018–2020). Her leadership philosophy is deeply rooted in strengthening clinical training, enhancing culturally and linguistically responsive practice, and empowering emerging professionals in communication sciences. Furthermore, her leadership style was marked by a consultative, and collaborative approach to clinical training. Ms Peter’s research portfolio intrests spans paediatric HIV, ototoxicity, early communication screening, diagnostic audiology, paediatric voice and swallowing disorders, and adult neuro-communication disorders. Her scholarship is reflected in peer-reviewed publications addressing hearing health in HIV-positive children, presbycusis counselling practices, diabetes-related audiological profiles, and community perspectives on communication screening programmes. She has presented her work at national and international conferences, including ICASA, the International AIDS Conference, and ENT/SASLHA/SAA congresses. She is also a recipient of the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) New Generation of Academics Programme Scholarship and the National Research Foundation (NRF) NGAP Research Grant. Across her clinical, academic, and research endeavours, Ms Peter remains committed to strengthening early childhood communication interventions, cultivating inclusive health systems, and advancing evidence-based audiology practice in resource-constrained communities. Her work reflects a strong integration of clinical expertise, research excellence, and transformative leadership within the South African health sciences landscape.