By Abdullahi Salad - Reporter
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MOGADISHU, 28 Oct — Shaafi Hospital has announced it successfully performed the first two modern cochlear implant surgeries ever carried out in Somalia.
In a press release issued on 27 October, the hospital said the achievement makes Somalia the ninth country in Africa to introduce the procedure, and Shaafi Hospital the first in the country to offer the service.
The surgeries were performed by Dr. Ismail Mohamed Ali, an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialist with particular expertise in ear surgery and cochlear implantation.
The procedures were made possible through a partnership between Shaafi Hospital and MED-EL, an international manufacturer of cochlear implant devices.
A cochlear implant is an electronic device surgically placed inside the ear. It helps people with severe hearing loss who cannot be helped by conventional hearing aids, by converting sounds into signals that reach the hearing nerve directly.
Shaafi Hospital said it will become the only centre in Somalia offering cochlear implant treatment and surgery, as well as speech therapy, which is essential for patients after surgery to learn to use their new hearing.
The services are expected to reduce the need for people with hearing loss and their families to travel abroad for treatment — journeys that are often expensive and beyond the reach of many.