WORLD Hearing Day will be celebrated tomorrow. The theme this year is “Hear the future… and prepare for it!”
The National Referral Hospital (NRH) Ear Nose & Throat (ENT) Clinic will be promoting simple health messages this week on ear disease prevention as part of its World Hearing Day activities in schools.
ENT Registered Nurse, Obiga Newton, says, ‘’The NRH ENT Clinic regularly see many patients with ear disease that could be avoided’.
“The main ear health messages from the ENT Clinic are: ‘’do not poke your ear or put things in your ear’ and ‘blow your nose’,” Mr Newton said.
“About 70 percent of ear problems begin from the nose, so if you blow your nose, and keep it clean and dry, then you will prevent many ear problems.
“For parents and caregivers of infants, do not clean your baby’s ears with cotton-buds”, and “keep your baby’s nose clean and dry”. “Ears are designed to clean themselves, so it is not necessary to use cotton-buds.”
The ENT Team delivered ear and hearing health promotion posters to Honiara City Council Child welfare clinics.
The Honiara City Council Public Library supported World Hearing Day by running a colouring competition on ear and hearing health messages.
Dr Annette Kasper, an Australian audiologist who has previously worked in the Solomon Islands, has returned to Honiara for the week to take part in World Hearing Day.
Kasper said, “Reading is one of the best gifts you can give someone and good hearing is essential for a child’s speech, language, and reading development.”
This week, the ENT team visited Shamma Christian Academy School and Norman Palmer Primary School in Honiara.
The NRH ENT Clinic is keen to increase its outreach work in the community.
ENT Registered Nurses Mr Fafale and Mr Falekwai said, “We are very happy to be part of the Mobile ENT Team, and we look forward to raising the profile of ENT healthcare and expanding ENT services in Honiara and all of Solomon Islands.”
‘’Many ear and hearing problems, especially among children, can be prevented and treated,” Newton said.
Public health messages such as eating fruits and vegetables in every meal and washing your hands and face, are important for healthy ears.
Routine immunisations and breast-feeding of infants also contribute to good hearing.
–NRH PRESS
