Reverend Muhoro School for the Deaf.

The High School, Reverend Muhoro School for the Deaf is situated in the remote Mukurwe-ini district, near Nyeri on the slopes of Mount Kenya. Started in 1993 with only six deaf boys the school is now mixed with boys and girls dormitories.

The school, one of only three of its type in Kenya, has over 200 deaf and profoundly deaf pupils – aged 14 to 22 – with some from as far afield as Uganda, Tanzania, Sudan and Burundi. They integrate with more than 100 pupils with full hearing which helps them to retain their powers of speech. It is a unique pairing which also teaches the able hearing children how to interact with someone with a disability and they learn the useful skill of signing.

Robert first heard about the project’s needs 2002 when he met the district’s MP Mutahi Kagwe at a charity event in the UK. He was told that with no welfare system and limited state funding, the school was heavily dependent on charitable support.

Robert said, “When I learned about the wonderful work – and the pressing needs – of the school, I was delighted to help and have since made numerable visits and throughout, had the support of our manufacturing colleagues in donating the diagnostic and hearing aid equipment which has been magnificent. We have taken hearing aids from all Manufacturers like Phonak, teaching aids from Starkey, GN Resound testing equipment, an Oticon Otoscope and batteries from Rayovac. There are plenty of people with hearing aids that are not working, simply because they can’t get hold of batteries.” Starkey have each year kindly produced the ear moulds from the impressions we supplied.

The school has not rested on their laurels either and from the first donation of a clinical audiometer for testing hearing, they built an audiometric room. This has since been extended twice, as we have increased the levels and specification of diagnostic equipment. Though rural, the testing and fitting facilities at Reverend Muhoro are probably the best in East Africa.

We are kept busy at the school, holding free ear ‘clinics’ for the local community and giving expertise on many aspects of ear care. Each weekend clinic on our visits is attended by an ENT consultant, a Doctor, audiological nurse and resident audiometrician.

Sadly, we have discovered that the vast majority of students have what is known as acquired hearing loss due to oto-toxicity. This is where the hearing has been adversely affected by the use of drugs to treat other conditions. There is a lot of malaria in kenya which can be cerebral. Invariably the only course of action is to treat with high doses of quinine. Whilst this saves the life of the individual, it can destroy the hearing. Another widely use drug in the treatment of tuberculosis is streptomycin. This too has a severe effect on the hearing. Unfortunately developing countries cannot afford more expensive targetted drugs which have fewer side effects. Kenya is a country without welfare and therefore patients are presented to the GP at very late stages of infection and the doctor has little choice but to use high dose medicines in order to save lives. The majority of students at Reverend Muhoro simply would not be there if they ahd been living elsewhere in the developed world. Certainly not in the numbers we find.

It reinforces their need of our services and galvanises our commitment to this region. I have always believed that a sure way to help an individual to break the cycle of poverty is through education. The hearing impaired students already along with their hearing compatriots start life in a poverty stricken area and have the added disadvantage of being unable to hear. We hope to provide some of them with the ability to hear and attend school, educate themselves and make their future a more level playing field.

We have identified a member of staff to receive audiological training and are pleased to have registered him for an intensive course in the basics of audiology in Pretoria, South africa. The financial investment has been considerable, but for continuity, it was essential. The incumbent audiometrician retires later this year and it is imperative we have someone competent to replace him. This allows the students hearing aids to be maintained in our absence.

Along with our team that usually consists of three or four hearing aid audiologists. We see this involvement as a long-term commitment and plans to make further visits are underway.

A further association has been made with the Priory Specialist Sports College in Portsmouth, who donate a wealth of sports equipment which we take on our visits. We also recently did some fundraising with them which raised enough money to sponsor two students for a full year of education including, boarding, uniform, food and educational fees.

Along with the companies within South East Hearing Care Centres, the generous support of the manufacturers, our colleagues, patient donations and some Rotary clubs, none of this would be possible. Thank you, to you all.