EARLY HEARING DETECTION AND INTERVENTION VIRTUAL CONFERENCE
MARCH 2-5, 2021

(Virtually the same conference, without elevators, airplane tickets, or hotel room keys)

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10/26/2018  |   12:30 PM - 4:30 PM   |  Introduction to Public Health Planning for Hearing Impairment   |  Kramer Lecture Theater 1

Introduction to Public Health Planning for Hearing Impairment

WHO estimates that 466 million people in the world have disabling hearing loss in 2018 and 80% live in low and middle income (LMI) countries. It is also a significant problem among disadvantaged groups in high-income countries. Hearing loss, delays and damages development of language in young children, slows school progress, causes difficulties obtaining and keeping a job, increases dementia in older people and leads to stigmatization at all ages. It results in poverty for individuals and families, and massive economic costs for society. Hearing loss is largely avoidable through appropriate prevention strategies but is generally neglected due to lack of awareness among health professionals and policy makers, as well as the general public. It can only be addressed on a large scale by adopting a public health approach within the existing health system. The presenter currently runs 5-day courses on Public Health Planning for Hearing Impairment in collaboration with Universities in LMI countries. The courses aim to develop an expanding cadre of people in LMI countries with the skills to set up public-health interventions and programmes for prevention and rehabilitation of hearing loss. So far, over 900 people from 43 countries have been trained on these courses. This session will act as an introduction to the course by outlining key principles of public health needed to address hearing loss, and key actions needed for planning programmes on a large scale where there are scarce resources. The half day course is appropriate for academics and professionals in Otology and Audiology and allied fields, and health planners from Ministries of Health and Education, and Non-Governmental Organizations.

  • Understand the global problem of ear disease and hearing loss: focusing on national, regional and global levels.
  • Apply public health principles to primary, secondary & tertiary prevention and rehabilitation of hearing impairment/disability.
  • Relate to the work in ear and hearing care of global organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and initiatives such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and their relevance at a local district level.

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Presenters/Authors

Andrew Smith (), London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, andrew.smith@lshtm.ac.uk;
I am an Honorary Professor at the International Centre on Evidence for Disability at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine since 2008. My interest is studying, promoting and teaching public health approaches to prevention and rehabilitation of hearing loss in low and middle income countries, and in disadvantaged communities in high-income countries. Since 2009, I and a colleague have developed and run 5-day courses on Public Health Planning for Hearing Impairment. Up till now, we have trained 946 health workers from 43 countries in 26 courses at 12 centres mainly in low and middle income countries.


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