REY DAYAP is Specsavers’ first audiologist based in the Northern Territory. Darwin born and bred,
he returned home after seven years in Melbourne to provide Territorians with the unique Specavers brand
of style, value and expertise.
Specsavers has more than 300 stores offering audiology nationwide but until now, none have operated in the Northern Territory’s Top End. That changed when The University of Melbourne-trained audiologist Mr Rey Dayap decided to return to his roots, paving the way for himself and hopefully others.
Dayap’s happy demeanour and easy-going nature lend themselves to the laid-back feel of Darwin and the NT.
“I’ve had customers say, ‘you know what I like about you? You’re local and you came back’,” Dayap says. “In a way I feel like a pioneer, and it comes with challenges and opportunities. One challenge is that before we provided audiology services in the NT we didn’t advertise Specsavers Audiology, so when we did open we had people come in and say, ‘Oh I didn’t know Specsavers did hearing’. However, now we offer audiology services, we’re advertising strongly, and people are telling me they’ve seen the ads on TV.”
While advertisements are bringing in some customers, Dayap says word of mouth from satisfied customers is proving a good drawcard with people referring friends.
“The business is slowly growing from word-of-mouth which means I’m doing something right if people are recommending me to their friends and family,” he says.
However, the bulk of his patients come from hearing screenings offered to optometry customers in store on an iPad as part of their customer journey.
After growing up in Palmerston, a satellite city of about 33,000 people 20 kilometres from Darwin, Dayap moved to Melbourne to study a Bachelor of Music majoring in composition at the University of Melbourne.
“I knew I wanted to do something in that field, and work with people. I’d been thinking about music therapy but after finishing in 2015 I changed my mind, as talking to friends who were doing it, I felt it wasn’t for me,” he recalls.
Friends who were studying speech pathology, and his mother being diagnosed with hearing loss when he was at university, gave him some exposure to audiology.
“When I first went into audiology, Mum said it was all because of her, and while it wasn’t exactly, I let her have that,” he says.
“I could see the impact and combined with my interest in sound, music and helping people it all clicked. I found linguistics fascinating, and a friend nudged me into thinking about audiology. I took a year off between honours and masters to consider if this was what I wanted to do but it was and I did my Masters in Audiology from 2017 to 2018.”
More than 200 days in outback communities
After graduation, Dayap was open to going anywhere for work. His top three places were Darwin, Hobart and Toowomba near friends but his recruitment agency was keen on Darwin.
“I moved home and worked with Hearing Australia for nearly five years,” he says. “I had one ‘normal’ year of audiology and then COVID hit which fast-tracked me into outreach in Indigenous communities. I went into quite a few communities and spent more than 200 days travelling and working in outback communities.
“There was a lot of paediatric work and otitis media in children. It was an amazing experience and something I’ll never forget, but I got to the point where I wanted to settle down as some months I would be away for two to three weeks at a time.”
Several audiologist friends had moved to Specsavers and after chatting with them, he decided to pursue that option.
“It was enlightening, they were honest and said they really enjoyed the work but it was still hard work,” he recalls. “I think what drew me to Specsavers was the fact I’d have more autonomy but still be working within a framework. I liked the idea I wasn’t necessarily going to be talking to
manufacturers to pick which hearing aids I would be working with because with a franchise arrangement, that’s already sorted.”
Dayap asked a friend to reach out to Specsavers recruitment to see if the network was looking for Darwin audiologists and although it wasn’t advertised, the message came back that recruitment wanted to call him and was keen to talk to him that day.
Soon after, at age 30, Dayap became a Specsavers Audiology partner. He started in September 2023 in an existing Specsavers optometry store within an indoor shopping centre in Palmerston. This location is an added bonus because people walking past with their groceries notice the banner he ordered stating: ‘Audiology now available’.
“I’ve had a great support network. The optometry partner and the retail partner were keen to have audiology on board for some time and it’s been good to have them standing with me. It fosters a good team dynamic and helps the business grow,” he says.
“When customers come in for an eye test if they meet certain criteria, they’re offered a hearing screening by our retail team, and those with hearing loss are offered a chat with me to understand what it means. I can gauge what kind of motivation they have, if they’re interested in a hearing aid, or a chat around communication strategies. If they are interested, I can book them in for a more comprehensive assessment.”
Hearing screening is also education
Dayap says that of those with hearing loss, about half want to discuss it, and out of those, another half are motivated for hearing aids at that time.
“A big part of what I like about Specsavers is how we are educating the public about hearing loss because research shows people often wait up to seven years before acting after finding they have hearing loss,” he adds. “Having that screening, even if they’re not ready for hearing aids, people start thinking about it and when they come back for an eye test, they might come back earlier for their hearing.”
Dayap has also seen adults with middle ear disease which usually impacts what hearing aid type is best. A device with tubing might be preferable to one with electronic wire which may be prone to more moisture damage, he says. He often refers Indigenous patients over age 50 in this situation to Hearing Australia because it has different funding streams for them. However, quite a few have chosen to stay with him, he adds.
“Specsavers Audiology’s ethos is to provide accessible and affordable hearing care to all and will always provide upfront and transparent information on the best funding options for all patients.” he adds.
Specsavers provides extensive training
Dayap’s extensive three-week induction covered software, products, training and business skills. Partners can also sign up for other training.
“When the opportunity for my own business came up, I thought, ‘why not?’. Specsavers was very good at making sure you did your due diligence. I was keen to jump on board but there was paperwork and legal documents to read through.”
Specsavers set up the clinic. “The optometry team had previously installed a room with a thick door pre-emptively at its last expansion, in preparation for it to be the audiology clinic. Once I was on-board, Specsavers fitted it out with a soundproof booth and provided all the necessary equipment.”
The Darwin lifestyle is another reason Dayap chose to return home. For the first two years he lived with his mother to save rent and whenever he could, he went camping and hiking with friends to the many beautiful national parks in the area.
Reputation helps
He has given hearing awareness talks at Palmerston and Litchfield Seniors Association meetings as the retail and optical partners had a relationship with the association which has already led to increased business.
“The other thing I like is that even though Specsavers has its own brand devices, they’re from three big manufacturers, and within that there is a range of options so I can find something best suited for each customer,” Dayap says.
“People know Specsavers has made a difference for the optical world. People have come in and said, ‘I like what Specsavers has done for glasses and I can see what it’s doing for hearing aids’, and I think that reputation definitely helps.”
One future goal is to work across both existing Specsavers optical stores including the Darwin-based store to extend services to the greater Darwin and NT population, including Katherine, three hours away.
“A lot of Specsavers audiologists work across multiple practices so I’m a bit of an exception but when I signed on that was part of the deal that I would eventually work across both,” he says. “A Hearing Australia team visits Katherine monthly, but I’ve already had patients aware of this who have chosen to travel from Katherine to see me.”
If Dayap’s launch in the territory is anything to go by, things will only get better for Specsavers Audiology and its customers in the top end.
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