Increasing access to cochlear implants in India

The Indian Prime Minister’s and Chief Minister’s Relief Funds, set up to assist people in need, have helped local hospitals to raise funds over the past nine years to buy the cochlear implants (CIs), according to the article. Other trusts, including the Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT) and Being Human – The Salman Khan Foundation, have also provided significant contributions.

“Cochlear implants can really open the doors of communication for a child and turn their lives around,” says Dr Milind Navalakhe, Associate Professor of ENT at Nair Hospital. Ramesh Bharmal, Dean of Nair Hospital, said that credit should also go to several trusts in Mumbai that have been silently helping children with hearing loss and cochlear implants. Nair Hospital already has a waiting list of more than 300 children.

According to Dr Hetal Marfatia, Professor at the ENT Department of KEM Hospital, “In the western world, around 75% of implant surgeries are done for adults. The trend, however, is quite the opposite here, partly because the implant is either self-funded or procured through charity. Also, people think it is normal to live with deafness in old age, not realizing that it can push seniors into depression and alienate them from their family.” The ideal age for CIs in children is often considered to be between the ages of eight months and four years for patients who are profoundly deaf.

Source: Times of India