Promoting Better Hearing

Promoting Better Hearing

Startling statistics reveal an estimated 63 million people in India to be hard of hearing! A look at the role of institutions engaged in remedying the malady

By Dr Suneela Garg, Deeksha Khurana

There is a disproportionately high burden of deafness in India most of which is preventable and avoidable. In India, 63 million people (6.3%) suffer from significant auditory loss. A 2011 Census has estimated hearing loss to be the second most common cause of disability accounting to 18.9% of disabled persons.

In India, there are a number of institutions which are engaged in promoting ear and hearing care in India viz. Rehabilitation Council of India, All India Institute of Speech and Hearing, Ali Yavar Jung National Institute of Hearing Handicapped and various medical colleges.

Rehabilitation Council of India is playing an instrumental role in promotion of ear and hearing care in the country. It is a statutory body under the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Government of India. Rehabilitation Council of Indiaregulates, monitors and standardizes the prescribed minimum standards of education and training for various categories of rehabilitation professionals. It also approves courses of study conducted by universities and institutions and makes necessary recommendation to university for recognition of such courses within and outside India. It is also playing a key role in promoting research in the field of rehabilitation & special education.

All India Institute of Speech and Hearing is an autonomous institute fully funded by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of India, which was established in the year 1966. The institute is involved in imparting professional training, rendering clinical services, conducting research and educating the public on issues related to communication and language disorders.  The institute is also the Nodal Center for implementation of National Program for Prevention and Control of Deafness under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, and is also generating manpower for the same. The institute also offers Diploma in Hearing Language and Speech (DHLS) Program through distance learning mode since 2007 which is aiming towards faster rate of manpower development at assistant/ technician level. This program is being imparted through 14 centres across the country.

Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for the Hearing Handicapped (AYJNIHH) was established in 1983 and is an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India. Its regional centres have been established at Kolkata, New Delhi, Secunderabad and Bhubaneshwar. In addition to manpower generation and research activities, Ali Yavar Jung National Institute of Hearing Handicapped (AYJNIHH) is undertaking hearing screening (ABR/ASSR/OAE/IA/PTA) and web-based hearing screening initiatives. AYJNIHH is the Nodal Agency for implementation of ADIP (Assistance to Disabled Persons) scheme as part of which cochlear implantation is being undertaken under the scheme.

Medical colleges play a leading role in combatting hearing loss. They are involved in manpower generation of different categories of human resources for ear care like ENT specialists, primary care providers, medical officers, audiologists, audiometricians, speech therapists, teachers for people with hearing loss and sign language interpreters. These institutions also serve as training units wherein they are involved in preparation of training modules and executing training programmes related to ear care. They are also involved in undertaking doctoral, diploma and distance education courses or programs for students and trainers. Various medical colleges have vital responsibility of implementation of National Programme for Prevention and Control of Deafness of Government of India is being at the district level since its inception in 2006.

Medical colleges act as referral centres for ear diseases and are involved in surveillance. Additionally, medical colleges also undertake research activities. They are also involved in IEC activities and carry out sensitization of community and house to house visits.

Effective response to hearing loss in the country needs to be organized at various fronts and institutions have an integral role to play in this regard. These institutions have over the years demonstrated their commitment to address the area of ear and hearing care.

 

(The authors are associated with the Department of Community Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi)

 

Proportion of Disabled Population by  Type of Disability India: 2011 (Eight Disability Covered)

 

Type of Disability	Persons	Males	Females
In Seeing	18.8	17.6	20.2
In Hearing	18.9	17.9	20.2
In Speech	7.5	7.5	7.4
In Movement	20.3	22.5	17.5
Mental Retardation	5.6	5.8	5.4
Mental Illness	2.7	2.8	2.6
Any Other	18.4	18.2	18.6
Multiple Disability	7.9	7.8	8.1
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0

 

Multiple Disability 7.9
In Seeing 18.8
In Hearing 18.9
In Speech  7.5
In Movement  20.3
Mental Retardation  5.6
Mental Illness  2.7
Any Other  18.4