Humanitarian aid organisation, Gift of the Givers and Bonitas Medical Aid launched an audiology programme to assist children with hearing difficulties. The programme was launched at Spearman Road Primary School in Sydenham on Thursday, 23 March.
The Gift of the Givers team tested learners at the school as part of the 15 860 learners who are being tested during this audiology project.
Lee Callakoppen, principal officer at Bonitas said the Gift of the Givers Foundation is internationally recognised for its swift disaster response, community support and healthcare interventions and they are delighted to be working with them.
‘We are truly excited by this partnership and we know this audiology project will have a profound impact on so many lives. Bonitas has generously sponsored the entire programme for the 2023 teaching year, at a cost of R1.7 million,” said Callakoppen.
Gift of the Givers founder, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman said he values the ongoing partnership with Bonitas. “Children’s learning is substantially compromised with hearing difficulties reducing the possibility for progress and achievement. Appropriate, early intervention is critical to make a meaningful impact on the academic development of the learner,” he said.
Spearman Road Primary School principal, Zibuyule Nzama, said she was thrilled that the school, which is 49 years old with a very diverse profile of learners, was chosen to be part of the project. “As educators we understand the importance hearing has on the learning and development of our learners. We are grateful to both Bonitas and Gift of the Givers for making this project a reality and helping us screen our learners. Children with undiagnosed hearing loss are often misdiagnosed as suffering from learning disabilities, ADHD or even autism spectrum disorder. They often present with poor school performance, poor attention as well as speech and language difficulties.”
Audiologist and head of the audiology project, Taskeen Ameer said a South African manufactured portable audiometer, called the Kuduwave, is being used for the project. “This state-of-the-art, medically certified device has revolutionised the testing and diagnosis of auditory related deficiencies. It combines a headset, audiometer and sound booth into a single, lightweight device, which can be used in just about any location. Two Kuduwave units are used to increase capacity and reduce downtime. Each test takes between 5 to 15 minutes,” said Ameer.
