As Audiology Clinical Manager, Phil is responsible for maintaining a quality service for patients at the Macquarie University Speech and Hearing Clinic, as well as making it a productive learning space for audiology students.

Work stuff

I’ve been at Macquarie for…
About nine years as a staff member, spread over two or three stints.

In a nutshell, my job is to…
Lead a team of amazing audiologists, ensure the audiology service in our clinic is running smoothly, contribute to the planning of our masters degree and try to keep the clinic on track in regards to long-term strategic goals.

The question I hear most often in my work is…
“Do you have a minute?”

The top three things on my to-do list today are…
1) Repair, remove or replace faulty equipment from the clinic
2) Planning a meeting with different stakeholders to work out a direction for a new project
3) Help resolve some confusion over processes we have recently adopted

If I could do any other job at Macquarie (with instant qualifications/knowledge) it would be…

I’d probably be an academic in one of the subjects I loved as a younger student: ancient history, philosophy or literature.

A Macquarie staff member who impressed me last week…
I can’t name just one, but our clinical and admin teams impressed me last week. Every week, they manage around 100 appointments, while mentoring about 15 students. Last week they impressed me more than usual because we had a few people, including myself, missing for long periods and they managed to pull through a very tough week with as positive an attitude as any group of people I’ve worked with before.

I get my campus coffee fix from …
Piccolo me.

If I could change anything about Macquarie it would be…
I think we are on a great path, and want to press fast forward!

Personal life

My ethnic heritage is…
My parents are both from Lebanon, they moved here separately and met here in the early 1970s.

My favourite subject at school was…
English.

Outside work, you’ll often find me…
I like to have one or two activities that are less intellectually stimulating than the rest of my week, usually I spend that time watching sport (NRL and cricket) or reading. I still have time to play music occasionally, but not as much as in my student days.

If I could have dinner with anyone (living or dead) it would be…
My daughter.

In 10 years from now, I hope to be…
With a happy, healthy family and a job as stimulating as the one I’m in now.