Training activities for parents of hearing impaired children prior to cochlear implantation

Abstract

Introduction: In Cuba, within the framework of the National Cochlear Implant Program, auditory pre-training is carried out for children who are candidates for receiving an implant. The pre-implant hearing rehabilitation is carried out by the specialized personnel of the health center where it is applied. Parents or guardians must rehabilitate them at home because they are with the child most of the time, helping them to develop spoken language.

Objective: Propose a set of activities, for the preparation of parents or guardians of hearing impaired children, in pre-cochlear implant auditory training.

Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional and qualitative study was carried out in the Borrás-Marfán complex in the period 2018-2020.The universe was made up of 112 children who attended the Specialized Service for Cochlear Implants and Complex Ear Surgery, of which 90 were taken as a sample.

Results: The female sex predominated with 80% of the total number of children included and the age of 2 to 5 years with 56.7%. The most frequent cause of hearing loss was of unknown origin with 32.2%. It was evidenced that 47.8% of children communicate using preverbal language.

Conclusions: Family knowledge about auditory training is insufficient and often parents or guardians do not rehabilitate the child at home. The monitoring of the application of the activities and the effectiveness of the guide applied to children with hearing loss before cochlear implantation with the active participation of the parents should be a primary task of the acting medical team.