Rate My Professor Bamini Gopinath

Professor Bamini Gopinath serves as the inaugural Cochlear Chair in Hearing and Health and Professor in the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences at Macquarie University. Appointed in October 2020, she leads the Public Health and Policy Pillar of Macquarie University Hearing (MU Hearing). An epidemiologist with expertise in public health, her research program centers on sensory loss, particularly age-related hearing loss. She investigates risk factors, prevalence, incidence, and progression of hearing impairment, as well as its associations with cognitive decline, falls, workplace productivity, and economic impacts. Her work demonstrates the broad health implications of hearing loss for older adults, including links to fatigue, social isolation, and reduced earnings. Previously, she conducted population-based studies at the University of Sydney, including at the Centre for Vision Research and Westmead Institute for Medical Research, where she identified novel risk factors for sensory impairments and attracted substantial funding for health outcomes research.

Gopinath's prolific publication record exceeds 320 papers, garnering over 14,000 citations. Key contributions include 'Workplace noise exposure and the prevalence and 10-year incidence of tinnitus' (2021), 'Co-occurring hearing loss and cognitive decline in older adults' (2021), 'Hearing and vision impairment and the 5-year incidence of falls in older adults' (2016), 'Economics of hearing disability' (2025), 'How hearing loss is hitting Australians' earnings' (2026), and 'Optimizing work performance and engagement in adults with hearing loss' (2025). She has led initiatives such as reviews of epidemiological data on hearing loss risk factors and studies on barriers to hearing care for older adults. Gopinath spearheads the Australian Eye and Ear Health Survey involving 5000 participants across urban, rural, and remote areas. She engages in public outreach through seminars, including 'Busting Myths' at Ideas@theHouse and presentations on public health approaches to hearing loss. Her efforts advocate for early intervention, improved service engagement, and policy advancements in hearing health.