Nora Al-Fayez, Dr. Aisha Natto and Faiza Natto with members of the Deaf Club for Women in Jeddah. — Courtesy photo Amal Al-Sibai Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – Nora Al-Fayez, deputy education minister for Women's Affairs, describes her visit to the the Hearing Impaired Club for Women in Jeddah as one of the most memorable days in her life. She met with an amazing group of Saudi women, who although afflicted with hearing impairment are bright, intelligent, creative, hardworking, and friendly. Al-Fayez was highly impressed with the efforts of the club to train the women with this disability and help them gain the qualifications they need to compete in the job market. The center hosted several training courses for its members in a number of skills, including artwork, drawing, painting, embroidery, making accessories, and cosmetology. The center has been assisting the women throughout every step of their lives; in education, job training, marriage, and in incorporating them in the society. Members describe the club as a partner that has helped them face and overcome the challenges in their lives. Businesswoman and board member of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dr. Aisha Natto, envision having such a supportive club for deaf women in every city of the Kingdom. To show these women how much she admired their hard work and to share with them their sense of accomplishment, Al-Fayez insisted on purchasing some of the hand crafts and products that the members of the Deaf Club for Women had made on their own. She inspected all sections of the club along with Dr. Aisha Natto and the president of the club, Fayza Natto. Among the additional developmental programs provided by the club are computer skills training courses, the art of make-up, painting on ceramic, sewing and embroidery, and cooking. The club has also launched and is continuously organizing campaigns to teach sign language to other members of the society. To facilitate communication and necessary transactions between the deaf women and the rest of society, the club offers intensive courses in sign language to the staff in several hospitals, government centers, private shops, and to the general public. An equally important task of the Deaf Club for Women is to provide educational and awareness lectures on some of the causes of early childhood deafness; some cases of childhood deafness can be preventable. These lectures are offered to the general public, to members and their mothers and other family members. Parents often wonder if there is something they did that resulted in their child's hearing loss. In most cases, the answer is no. Children may be born with hearing loss without any explainable reason. However some cases may be due to known factors, which must be brought to attention to avoid recurrence of the same problem in other family members. The following are some of the causes of deafness in babies and young children. Severe and recurrent ear infections in infants. Exposure of the pregnant woman to certain infections can cause hearing loss in her baby and they may damage the baby's inner ear. These infections during pregnancy have been linked with hearing loss in the infant: German measles or rubella, cytomegalovirus, toxoplasmosis, and syphilis. The fetus's hearing system is growing in the first three months of pregnancy and is most susceptible to damage during this stage. infections in the mother at the time of birth. Problems during birth that can cause hearing loss in the newborn include oxygen deprivation, jaundice, and birth trauma.
Infections during infancy and early childhood, such as bacterial and viral meningitis, mumps, and chicken pox, especially when accompanied by high and uncontrollable fever. Genetics Sudden and loud noises over a long period of time may cause hearing impairment.
