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Categories

  • Education/Training/Employment Education/​Training/​Employment
  • Health/Wellbeing Health/​Wellbeing
  • Beneficiaries

    • Children (3-18) Children (3-18)
    • Young People (18-30) Young People (18-30)

    Situation

    Project 1 – Hearing aids for individuals and our loan bank By providing training and hearing aids for hearing impaired babies and children we are able to help many escape a life of indignity, poverty and desperation. But for him £2,000 might as well be a million. This is an awful reality facing many parents in Israel. Unfortunately the economic situation prevailing in Israel has been hard hit and poverty is widespread. For many children coming from under privileged families we are talking about unimaginable wealth. I am sure you are well aware that welfare budgets are being continuously slashed. A large number of these young hearing disabled children, after being diagnosed at Shema Kolenu, see the street corner as the only place to go to. Can we reject them…..? Our fund has been set up to help the many parents in need who approach the centre towards the cost of hearing aids. The cost of these aids, which are a basic necessity, run between £1,500 - £2,500 a pair. As a child grows older his hearing ability changes, so too the hearing aid has to be adjusted or replaced altogether. In such a case the hearing aid is submitted to our loan bank to be used by another child on trial until the correct hearing aid has been approved to give him maximum hearing capability. If only he would receive the right service he needs before the age of five, those years being crucial to his development, we would be able to provide him later on with a host of educational programs. Project 2 –Audio Room for the new Ashdod Centre Ongoing testing of the children’s hearing capacities and state of their hearing aids is crucial. To meet this need Shema Kolenu is in dire need of its own sound proof room where hearing tests for infants and children are conducted. The room features standard testing equipment for conductive hearing losses as well as testing apparatus which provides visual feedback to help prepare infants and young children for testing. In addition tympanometry testing equipment assesses the condition of the middle ear and provides information about the presence of fluids. The Audio scan, tests the compatibility of a child’s hearing aid based on his personal data, including age, ear volume, and the extent of his hearing loss. The Audio Scan indicates both the optimal level of amplification for the child tested and the actual amplification provided by the unit, allowing for precise adjustment. In this way, the level of amplification does not exceed the child’s needs. The audiometer is a computerised machine to perform the hearing tests. All tests will be conducted by prominent experienced physicians and specialist who are considered one of the finest and most professional by Israeli and international standards who as I mentioned previously conduct the hearing tests in our Jerusalem branch and are affiliated with Share Zedek hospital, Tel Hashomer Medical centre etc. This Audio scan, audiometer and its specially designed room to perform the hearing tests is a vital piece of equipment for the opening of the new centre. Audio room £10,000 Table FM devices £15,000 Hearing aid device £9,000 Audiometer £4,500 Tympanometer £4,000 Audio scan Verifit £8,000 Classroom FM devices £9,000 Project 3 – Day Camp For most children the spring season creates a sensation of anticipation that within a few short weeks they will be on their way to camp. We have realized that our children have been deprived in the past of such enjoyment for various reasons. For the past few years we have organized a day camp for the children who attend our center. For them the changing season means more than for others, because in camp they can enjoy doing what all other children do and leave their disability behind them, swimming with a lifeguard trained towards the needs of the hearing disabled, they can participate in sport specially arranged for them etc. We have arranged special tours with guides who are trained towards their needs, outings and a lot more entertainment. Looking back at the last day camp it was an extraordinary success. Says one of our participants, “We visited places, which we never have seen. It has given me confidence … we were relaxed, laughed and smiled!! It is an experience we will never forget”. Parents who deal with the hearing disabled child all year round are also among those anxiously anticipating the summer. This short break does the world of good for the entire family. This project has a major impact on family welfare We offer a contribution to each child towards the camp, however raising the funds we require in order to provide a holiday for the children in need, is a constant challenge. Project 4 - The Snoezelen Snoezelen or controlled multisensory stimulation is used for people with mental and physical disability and involves exposing them to a soothing and stimulating environment - ‘the snoezelen room’. These rooms are specially designed to deliver stimulation to various senses, using lighting effects, colour, sounds, music, scents etc. The combination of different materials on a wall may be explored using tactile senses, and the floor may be adjusted to stimulate the sense balance. Snoezelen rooms have been established in institutions all over the world (like in Germany, where more than 1,200 exist). As one is well aware the inner ear is next to the balance control of one’s body, most children who are hearing disabled suffer severely from balance infirmity too. The snoezelen is most beneficial to hearing disabled children as it is used as a motivation sensory stimulation and repressor. Should the hearing disabled child not get all the stimulation and enrichment needed, the gap becomes wider and harder to bridge. All this is needed in order to maximise the potential of deaf children. Children who suffer from hearing loss have many other un/related physical and mental problems. We have to provide every student with a service specially tailored to their specific needs. There was a full report on the snoezelen room at the Jackson Memorial Hospital in 2004. Should you need more information regarding the snoezelen please don’t hesitate to contact me, I should be able to provide you with full photo galleries of snoezelen rooms if needed.

    Solution

    100%
    Categories

  • Education/Training/Employment Education/​Training/​Employment
  • Health/Wellbeing Health/​Wellbeing
  • Beneficiaries

    • Children (3-18) Children (3-18)
    • Young People (18-30) Young People (18-30)