January 9th, 2018 ― Doha: A medical delegation from Qatar has completed a two-week visit to Gaza, during which they performed 24 cochlear implants for Palestinian children with congenital hearing loss.
The delegation comprised doctors from Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) and Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC).
These operations are added to 44 cases already operated by the medical team in earlier similar visits to the Strip. Other goals of the visit were to build the capacity of local medics and establish a new rehabilitation department at the H.H. the Father Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Hospital for Rehabilitation and Artificial Limbs.
Several institutions contributed to the success of the mission, including QRCS, the Qatari Committee for Reconstruction of Gaza, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), Qatar's Ministry of Public Health (MoPH), the Palestinian Ministry of Health, the H.H. the Father Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Hospital for Rehabilitation and Artificial Limbs, and Ooredoo. "We have made a remarkable achievement in the Gazan blockade," said Dr. Abdul-Salam Al-Qahtani, the head of delegation; Senior Consultant and Head of Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head, and Neck Surgery at HMC; and board member and head of medical committee at QRCS. "We have treated 24 children, or 6-7 a day. In addition to the last year's 44 surgeries, the total is 68 cochlear implants. They were all successful," he added.
Dr. Al-Qahtani explained the three pillars of the project for the coming years: (1) early detection of hearing deficiencies, (2) hearing aids, and (3) cochlear implants.
According to him, the project is a significant advancement to the Palestinian health sector. First, preschool children are screened for hearing problems and accordingly referred to either tracks: hearing aid or cochlear implant. Then, they are subject to a three-year rehabilitation programme.
Also, the project gives the Palestinian medical staff an opportunity to practice this kind of surgery, so that they become self-dependent.
Dr. Khalid Abdul-Hadi, Senior Consultant and Head of Audiology and Balance Unit at HMC, described an impressive situation that happened to him during his participation in the mission: "When I met a kid who had a cochlear implant, he was very happy and said he wished to grow up as a cochlear implant surgeon to help his fellow kids. It was as exciting as the very moment when a kid with hearing loss could hear his parent's voices for the first time".
A new rehabilitation department was established at the H.H. Father Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Hospital for Rehabilitation and Artificial Limbs, Dr. Abdul-Hadi revealed. He called upon the benevolent donors of Qatar to help the Gazan children with hearing loss. "A child with hearing disability costs the government 25 times more than a hearing person. They need special schools, language, and other requirements. They cannot be left unattended," he noted.
Dr. Nasr Al-Titr, Director, the H.H. the Father Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Hospital for Rehabilitation and Artificial Limbs, gave a hint about the suffering of children with hearing disability in Gaza: "The blockade on Gaza since 2007 has made it difficult for the patients to travel abroad for treatment. The cost is too expensive for the low-income families of Gaza. The number of cases is on the rise, and there is a dire need to localize the cochlear implant procedure and rehabilitation. That is why this medical mission has brought considerable hope for those kids to be reintegrated into society".
For more information, please contact Fareed Adnan, Head of Media Affairs, Communication Department, Tel.: +974 5583 7338, email: fareed@qrcs.org.qa.