BA-Psych, MSLP, MPH Cyrena is a Certified Practicing Speech Pathologist with extensive clinical expertise in child speech, language, and communication. She has delivered speech pathology services and clinical education across a range of settings, including hospitals, community health centres, Aboriginal health centres, schools, and preschools. Cyrena is passionate about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, LGBTIQA+ health, health promotion, health equity, and social justice. These passions led her to pursue a Master’s in Public Health, through the University of New South Wales, which she completed with excellence in 2023. As a lecturer in the Masters of Speech Pathology program, Cyrena is committed to empowering students and fostering student-centered learning experiences. Her research interests lie at the intersection of public health and speech pathology, with a particular emphasis on improving access and equity within the profession. Cyrena currently works remotely from Darug land in the Blue Mountains, NSW. Cyrena teaches within the Masters of Speech Pathology program, with a focus on paediatric language assessment and intervention, clinical reasoning, cultural safety, and access and equity within the profession. She has experience teaching at both undergraduate and master’s levels and completed the Contemporary Approaches to University Teaching course through CAULLT in 2023. Cyrena’s teaching approach is grounded in providing high-quality, engaging, and practical learning experiences that are student-centred. Cyrena strives to create an environment that encourages active learning and critical thinking, helping students meaningfully connect theory to practice. She is committed to empowering the next generation of speech pathologists to think holistically and consider equity and social justice in their clinical decision-making. Cyrena’s research interests are shaped by her professional work, academic studies, and lived experiences. She is passionate about health equity, supporting diversity, and promoting access, equity, and cultural safety within the speech pathology profession. Her research focuses on identifying and addressing barriers to healthcare access for diverse communities. As part of her Masters in Public Health, Cyrena conducted a research project that examined the prevalence of speech, language, and communication needs within a cohort of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. The project also explored the barriers and enablers to accessing support to address these needs. Recently, Cyrena completed a project for NSW Health, which examined the experiences of LGBTIQ+ families accessing maternity and child health services. This project aimed to understand the barriers and enablers to access and inclusion and provided recommendations for improving healthcare practices to better support these families.
Speech Pathology
Cyrena Hunt-Madden
Lecturer in Speech Pathology