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10/26/2019  |   3:45 PM - 5:00 PM   |  Ventana Ballroom C

Hearing Health-Related Humanitarian Missions in the Dominican Republic: Disorganized Success?

For the past 24 years, members of Project EAR have been traveling to the Dominican Republic to provide hearing healthcare to the poor and underserved population. During this time, many other groups have completed similar projects. It is unfortunate that there has been very little communication between these groups. To try to better understand the dynamics of hearing health-related humanitarian missions, a survey was sent to the 118 members of the Dominican Society of Otolaryngology to inquire about their knowledge of such missions. A second survey was also administered to address how these individuals benefit or suffer from the missions. Additionally, web searches were performed to identify otolaryngology and audiology-related missions over the past 10 years, and an attempt was made to contact participants to gain further knowledge of their work. The results of these inquiries will be reviewed and discussed, with particular emphasis on how these humanitarian missions affect the following: reducing burden of disease, continuity of patient care, coordination of care with local health care providers, and education of local healthcare providers. In today’s age of connectedness via the internet, email, and social media, we should strive to work together and pool resources to improve the hearing health of those in need. Our goal is to use the information collected from this study to begin to coordinate the many humanitarian projects undertaken and thereby improve the overall hearing health of the citizens of the Dominican Republic. These concepts should be easily applied to other countries as well.

• Understand how disorganization of humanitarian missions influences the results that can be achieved
• Learn how perceptions of local healthcare providers can influence the success of humanitarian work

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Edward Dodson (POC,Primary Presenter), 1. OSU Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery LLC 2. Project EAR, edward.dodson@osumc.edu;
Dr. Dodson is a Professor of Otology, Neurotology & Cranial Base Surgery in the Department of Otolaryngology at The Ohio State University. A faculty member since 1996, Dr. Dodson completed all of his education (undergraduate through Neurotology Fellowship) at the University of Virginia. Dr. Dodson also has adjunct faculty appointments in the Department of Speech and Hearing Science and the Department of Neurosurgery. In 1995, Dr. Dodson joined his mentor, Paul Lambert, on the inaugural Project EAR medical mission to the Dominican Republic, providing hearing healthcare to the underserved population in the country and educating local doctors and healthcare workers. Since then he has led 41 of the 50 Project EAR trips, and has served as president of the organization since it became an official non-profit organization in 2000. In 2006 Dr. Dodson helped establish the first (and only) cochlear implant program in the Dominican Republic.

ASHA DISCLOSURE: Financial - No relevant financial relationship exists. Nonfinancial - No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.

AAA DISCLOSURE: Financial - No relevant financial relationship exists.