Hear the Call visits Tembisa to test children’s hearing

Nearly 1 300 children from Tembisa have benefited from the on-site audiology screening thanks to the partnership between South African healthcare innovator eMoyo Technologies and Entheos Hearing Connection, the US-based non-government organisation (NGO).

The collaboration is part of the Entheos’ global ‘Hearing the Call’ initiative which provides hearing healthcare in nine countries including Zambia, Mozambique, Lebanon, Jordan, West Bank, Ecuador, Guatemala, Turks and Caicos and now South Africa.

The team is made up of audiologists and volunteers from the United States who give their time and talent to help build sustainable interventions in hearing and related healthcare issues.

The Tembisa project used the eMoyo’s KUDUwave mobile audiology testing and diagnostic device, which combines the sound booth, audiometer and headset typically used by audiologists into a single, portable solution.

Dr Dirk Koekemoer, founder and CEO of eMoyo, says this project highlights the importance and relevance of mobile audiology screening capabilities.

“It would simply not have been possible to transport 1 300 children to one of Johannesburg’s audiology sound booths. Taking the screening system to the children meant we could easily reach these underprivileged communities and identify the cases that needed next-level care. At the same time, healthy children did not lose time by being out of school so all the children benefit in some way,” said Koekemoer.

Forty children were identified with an immediate need and referred to doctors or specialists for further treatment, while one hearing-impaired child’s life was changed with the fitting of a hearing aid.

For the children screened through the drive, 319 children had ear wax removed. This in itself improved their hearing significantly, but it’s also a strong indicator that there’s a further need for more attentive primary healthcare in this community.

Nora Stewart, founder of Hearing the Call said they were honoured to have had the opportunity to work with eMoyo and the South African government.

“For kids, hearing is important for language development and connecting with family and friends. South Africa is a beautiful country, but even more beautiful is the spirit of the people. We are grateful to be here and partnering with eMoyo,” said Stewart.