World Hearing Day 2019

The Starkey Hearing Foundation partnered with the Ministry of Education in Uganda to provide hearing aids to 1,000 school children. The project was sponsored by the World Bank through UNICEF with the help of the Uganda Teachers and School Effectiveness Project. The project was launched by Hon. Rosemary Sseninde, the State Minister for Primary Education in Entebbe in August 2018.

Uganda is in east-central Africa, a vast territory filled with kind smiles. Our team was able to help more than 1,750 patients throughout six different cities in a ten-day time span. Many of these patients came from hours away to receive the gift of hearing. The students came from 298 schools from the five regions of the country. Of the 1,700 students who received ear and hearing healthcare services, 1,600 were fitted with hearing aids, given free batteries and today are receiving AfterCare services. We are conducting ongoing counseling on hearing aid care and use, teacher and parent training as well as free replacement of broken hearing aids. Additionally, we provide speech therapy for the hearing aid recipients with the goal of mainstreaming them into life.

Ninety-year-old Doreen was brought by car, as she is unable to walk because of her age. She traveled from her home, which was a 4-hour drive away.

Grace, a mother of four, was able to hear her baby for the first time. Although she was unable to speak, her smile said it all.

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