Baguio recipient of free hearing aid program

BAGUIO City has been chosen as one of the recipients of the free hearing aid program of the Starkey Hearing Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Minnesota, USA, dedicated to providing communitybased hearing healthcare around the world.

The foundation in partnership with the city government launched the Wide Frequency Audibility (WFA®) Community Based Hearing Program Nov. 17-18 at the Department of Education (DepEd) Baguio where indigent residents numbering 600 to 1,000 were expected to avail of free medical services and hearing gadgets.

Mayor Mauricio Domogan last week mobilized the working committees for the program tasking the newly created Persons with Disabilities Affairs Office (PDAO) and the City Social Welfare and Development Office to provide a list of patients and recipients and other agencies and offices for other manpower and logistical requirements of the program.

The free medical services include expert professional hearing services, free hearing aids amounting to P16 million, body aid costing P25,000-P50,000 for patients with most severe hearing losses, bone conductor amounting to P175,000-P200,000 for patients with problems in their outer or ear canal and free medicines for ear infection, otic drops and oral medicines.

The mayor lauded the program for aiding hearing impaired residents who do not have access to such medical intervention and cannot afford the cost of hearing aids and the after care services.

The other beneficiaries are Pampanga, Manila, Bicol, Cagay

an De Oro and Davao.

The communitybased WFA fitting method was created by the SHF to provide meaningful benefits for people with hearing loss across the globe.