Japan has recently established a pioneering early intervention program for children with hearing loss. This new initiative is based on the favorable approaches offered by the strong practices that exist at the Shepherd Centre in Australia. This pilot program seeks to increase advocacy of educational support for young children who are implanted with cochlear implants. It guarantees they receive the specialized therapy required to foster their listening and verbal communication abilities.
Dr. Aleisha Davis, CEO of the Shepherd Centre, emphasized that cochlear implant technology alone is insufficient for children with hearing loss. Our program hopes to fill this gap by pairing technological access and development with crucial therapeutic support.
Dr. Akira Takagi, a hearing health specialist from Japan, first discovered the work of the Shepherd Centre a decade ago. He saw tremendous opportunity for partnership to better serve the large number of Japanese children identified with hearing loss. In Japan, it has been customary to implant children later, typically at the age of one or two years old. By contrast, it is common for Australian children to have the operation by six months of age.
The new program offers early intervention therapy in addition to cochlear implant surgery. Thanks to this timely support, children like Baby Rafael and Louis can now receive the care they need. At that age, Rafael had his cochlear implant as young as six months old. He heard for the very first time and it was pure bliss. His mom, Renata Reis, said she’s overcome with joy at this achievement.
“That’s where the magic happens. There’s the beautiful day that we were waiting for this first six months of his life where he could hear us for the first time. That was unbelievable. We were waiting, so excited for this day.” – Renata Reis
Louis, an energetic two-and-a-half-year-old, was identified with hearing loss shortly after birth. For the last two years, he’s thrown himself into weekly therapy sessions at the Shepherd Centre. His mom said it was this ongoing support that was critical to his growth.
“The program here was essential for them to thrive. You come here for maybe a day in the week, but it’s all about the work that you put in every single day, exposing them to language, to sounds and music. They’re doing quite well at school. They are very social little people.” – Renata Reis
Dr. Davis emphasized the misconception that hearing aids and cochlear implants do not exist, or that they are known but taboo. She explained how these devices now allow children to experience sound. They often fail to teach kids how to manipulate those sounds themselves.
“There’s such a misconception that hearing aids or cochlear implants help a child hear, but they don’t. They provide access and the technology helps them hear sound, but brains aren’t wired to understand sound at such early ages. So we provide the therapy that enables the children to understand what those signals are and to learn to use them in their everyday environments.” – Dr. Aleisha Davis
The Shepherd Centre has since collaborated and developed a strong bond with its Japanese equivalent. Combined, they are achieving important wins in addressing childhood hearing loss in Japan. Dr. Takagi aims to create a holistic ecosystem that includes cochlear implant technology from the ground up. More importantly, he shines a light on the essential role of therapy in deepening this practice.
“This is the system I am trying to create in Japan in collaboration with the Shepherd Centre.” – Dr. Akira Takagi
Renata Reis reinforced the importance of having deaf children introduced to Auslan from an early age. She wants that access to be a gateway necessary for their holistic development. She recognizes that bringing together all those different modes of communication is key to their evolution.
“It’s not an either/or, black or white, system that you can either have access to sound or access to Auslan and they can be used in conjunction with each other. Our position is that Auslan is essential and it’s a valuable and vital language for deaf children to have access to.” – Unspecified Source
CEO of Deaf Australia, Shirley Liu, welcomed this position, expressing strong support. She showed us the experiences—all very different from one another—that deaf people have throughout the country. She stressed that multiple modes of communication need to be provided in order to serve the individual needs of all deaf children.
Dr. Davis is very excited about the new collaboration. In her opinion, this development will greatly influence core curriculum for children with hearing loss in Japan.
“I am thrilled that it’s happening and that we can help many more children than those locally here in Australia. It really will change the way that children grow up learning to listen with cochlear implants in Japan.” – Dr. Aleisha Davis
