In Balodabazar district, the team of National Child Health Program Chirayu has operated on two children suffering from hearing impairment from birth and restored their hearing ability. Yesterday, both the children of village Chakravay and village Bitkuli of development block Simga underwent successful operation at All India Institute of Medical Sciences Raipur and they are recovering well. In this regard, Chief Medical and Health Officer Dr. Rajesh Kumar Awasthi said that five and a half year old Bhanu Nishad of village Chakravay of development block Simga and five year old Aaru Sahu of village Bitkuli were born hearing impaired, which were identified by the team of Chirayu which was conducting health checkup of the children.
After several types of tests of both the children, AIIMS doctors advised cochlear implant operation. In this, Bhanu Nishad’s operation was done on 20 August and Aaru Sahu’s on 22 August, which was successful. According to Simga’s block medical officer Dr. Paras Patel, the parents of both the children were prepared for this operation by counseling them in many ways. Parents told that the children were deaf from birth. Due to this, they could not be brought up like normal children.
Because the children cannot hear, they could not develop language skills, which also caused difficulty in speaking. The financial condition of the family is also ordinary, due to which they could not afford treatment in expensive private hospitals. Bhanu’s father is a driver while Aaru’s father runs a small tea shop. Both the children have undergone this operation free of cost. Tests and medicines were also provided free of cost.
According to District Program Manager Srishti Mishra, under the National Child Health Program Chirayu, the health team conducts health tests in schools and Anganwadi centers. In this, many types of diseases are identified and children are treated. Even before this, cases like crooked legs, hole in the heart, cataract in children have been treated. It is worth noting that cochlear implant is an electronic device which is fitted to a person who either has no hearing ability or has very low hearing ability. In this, one part is external while the other part is placed inside the ear through surgery. It is very expensive in private hospitals, which can cost lakhs.
