The laughter of a child is a sweet reminder of the gift of hearing. Dr. Nimet Adam is an audiologist in Florida, committed to using her professional talent to help refugee children hear again. Through the Entheos Cooperative, an Audiology based organization, Dr. Adam, a member of its Board of Directors, has organized and participated in numerous mission trips to treat refugee children with hearing loss. She has participated in mission trips to refugee camps in Amman, Jordan and her team has fit over 300 children, from 1 ½ years old to young adults, with ear molds, and high quality hearing aids.
When the severity of the children’s condition cannot be corrected by a hearing aid, Dr. Adam’s team makes arrangements with neighboring countries and the U.S to assist in obtaining cochlear implants for the children. Refugee children are at extreme high risk of hearing loss due to their exposure to noise from war, lack of access to medical care, poor hygiene due to living circumstances and interestingly, hereditary predisposition from a high prevalence of hearing loss from intermarriage.
Hearing loss can impact a child’s educational success and future job opportunities. The isolating nature of hearing loss is exacerbated by the fact that these refugee children do not have a home to which they can return. Many of these children have genetic syndromes that have never been diagnosed and their families are in dire need of counseling and support. Hearing loss in all young children can be a difficult experience for parents, but can be even more traumatic for parents of refugee children.
In addition to her work in diagnosing the condition of hearing loss, Dr. Adam and her team train the local nurses and health care workers to carry on this invaluable work. They are trained to clean the devices, troubleshoot, and are given resources for auditory training and aural rehabilitation therapy. Supplies are also provided to the local teams so that on-going follow-up can be done until the team can return the following year. She has also forged an alliance with the University of Jordan, establishing a program for telemedicine and training.
Being a refugee from Uganda herself, she is moved by the plight of refugees. Asked how she feels about her humanitarian work, Dr. Adam states: “I consider it a great privilege and gift to be given the opportunity to use my craft to help those that are in such great need. I have always loved being an Audiologist, but humanitarian work will be my life’s passion and I hope to be able to bring awareness of the need for hearing healthcare throughout the world.”
