Wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Buhari, has charged medical authorities in the country to ensure the provision of adequate diagnostic, treatment and rehabilitative services in hospitals across the country in order to reduce the number of Nigerians with hearing disabilities.
Speaking at an event organized to mark World Hearing Day by the State House Clinic on Wednesday in Abuja, Mrs Buhari stressed the need for the populace to be informed about the availability of such services.
Mrs. Buhari, who was represented by the wife of the Governor of Nasarawa state, Mrs. Mairo Tanko Almakura, said loss of hearing does not signify an end to life because interventions on hearing loss are available and are cost-effective.
“The populace must be encouraged to prevent themselves by going for regular screening, and rehabilitating themselves through hearing devices,” she said.
In his remarks, President of the Oto – Rhino – Laryngological Society of Nigeria (ORLSON), an umbrella organization for Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialists, Professor O. Nwaorgu , said neonatal hearing screening should be made mandatory in all health facilities to ensure that babies with hearing loss or predisposed to hearing loss are identified early.
He also identified noise as an increasing source of hearing loss, citing chronic exposure to moderate sounds as very dangerous to the ear.
He, therefore, called for regulation on noise emission, control and abatement in order to preserve and maintain public health.
