Yaroslava, a four-year-old from Sumy region, received state-of-the-art hearing aids with artificial intelligence provided by Rinat Akhmetov Foundation

Yaroslava was born a healthy child. Her parents began to notice hearing problems when she was three years old - first during illnesses, and then much more often. An examination confirmed that the girl needed hearing prosthetics and lessons with a sign language teacher. Recently, Yaroslava, a 4-year-old from Sumy region, received state-of-the-art hearing aids from Rinat Akhmetov Foundation that are adjusted to the child's needs. 

"I found information on the internet about Rinat Akhmetov Foundation's help for children with hearing impairments. We called and in a few weeks we received the devices. We are very grateful for this help, because it is very difficult to raise money for a hearing aid. And we are grateful for the efficiency. Now we will be able to start working with sign language teachers as soon as possible. There is still a lot of work to be done, but we have the devices and something to work with," Olga, Yaroslava's mother, said.

Halyna Ivashchenko, an audiologist and hearing care specialist at the Hearing Centre, explains that hearing loss like Yaroslava's hinders the child's development. Children with hearing loss have problems with communication, speech, and learning, so high-quality hearing aids are essential. 

"We offered Yaroslava the latest generation of hearing aids. These are artificial intelligence devices, the best for children. They have good binaural noise reduction and good communication. And most importantly, they have clear natural sound in real time. That is, they reproduce exactly the sound that people with normal hearing hear. Thanks to the devices, neither mental nor speech development will be delayed, the child will develop like all other children of her age," Halyna explained.

Hearing assistance under Rinat Akhmetov to Children. I Can Hear Now project can be provided to children with hearing impairments under the age of 7 who live or have lived in territorial communities in the areas of hostilities, occupation or encirclement. More than 230 children have already received such assistance from the Foundation.

If there is a child among your relatives or friends who needs hearing prosthetics, please call the toll-free hotline 0 (800) 509 001 (Monday to Friday) or write to the Foundation's messenger https://m.me/AkhmetovFDU