NANDI MARKS WORLD HEARING DAY, DISPEL MYTHS, ENCOURAGE EARLY INTERVENTION AND TREATMENT FOR HEARING LOSS
The world hearing day is commemorated every 3rd of March, with the aim of increasing awareness about good ear health and prevention of deafness.
Nandi County in collaboration with Children’s Speech and Hearing Foundation and Centre for Hearing India joined rest of the world in marking the day with the theme “Don’t Let Hearing Loss Limit You” to mark the importance of having regular check-ups as a strategy for preventing Hearing loss and deafness. The event was open to the public and school children where conducted free ear screening, ear care and hearing health talks, consultations, issuing of advocacy materials such as brochures, and social media campaign on ear care.
In honour of the day, the Department of Health and its partners organised a number of activities in and around Kapsabet to commemorate the day including medical camps where free services like; ear screening, treatment of ear diseases, ear/nose/throat.
Deputy Governor Dr. Yulita Cheruiyot who was the Chief Guest at the event said that the county government will collaborate with organizations and people who are passionate about helping those with hearing loss connect to the resources and organizations they need.
“Often left untreated in adults, hearing loss is associated with other medical conditions such as dementia, heart disease, and diabetes—and can have a negative impact on one’s social life, personal relationships, mental health, and quality of life,” said Ruth Koech, CEC for Health.
Dr. Anup Anand from Centre for Hearing in India urged parents to take their children for early screening. “Before you consider taking your child to school for the deaf, take them for hearing loss check up first, since the problem could be solved at an ENT centre,” he said.
Among prevention measures that hearing experts are proposing include; Immunizing children against childhood diseases, including measles, meningitis, rubella and mumps; Immunizing adolescent girls and women of reproductive age against rubella before pregnancy; Screening for and treating syphilis and other infections in pregnant women; Improving antenatal and perinatal care, including promotion of safe childbirth; Following healthy ear care practices and Screening of children for Otitis Media, followed by appropriate medical or surgical interventions.
Unaddressed hearing loss can increase social barriers in the education field, at work and in many other aspects of life. In children, for example, hearing plays a fundamental role in language development: hearing loss during childhood and adolescence may cause reduction in attention and concentration ability, as well as difficulty reading and understanding with a negative effect on school performance. Early detection and treatment of hearing loss has a positive impact on learning ability.
There is no cure for hearing loss! Protect your hearing, and if you already have hearing loss, take steps to keep it from getting worse.
Also present were the CEC for Tourism and Social Welfare Wilson Taiy, Director for Health Dr. David Bungei, Regional Director NCPWD, among other officials.