2025 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 9-11, 2025 • Pittsburgh, PA
DAVID L. LAWRENCE CONVENTION CENTER
Award Winner/Nominee Details 2025
Fundacioón Oír es Vivir - Panama
What began with a diagnosis of profound deafness for my son Christopher and then a diagnosis of unilateral deafness for my daughter Stephanie, has become a success story that I live as president of Fundación Oír es Vivir in Panama, an NGO that has served more than 35,000 people.
Being able to channel all my pain and turn it into work that changes lives for children, young people and adults has been a privilege. Working on this cause has not been easy, especially because in Panama, the Neonatal Hearing Screening Law did not exist until 3 years ago. Public hearing health services are scarce, appointments take months and help resources such as free hearing aids and cochlear implants are almost non-existent for those in need; Only a few can benefit, but achieving full lives in the midst of hearing loss requires much more than obtaining the device.
That has been the mission of Fundación Oír es Vivir: to offer under one roof the entire cycle from early detection, diagnoses, education for parents or caregivers, cochlear implants (initially) and free hearing aids or at a very low cost, all complemented with language therapy to ensure we accompany our beneficiaries throughout the entire cycle, until they achieve success, cause ¡deaf people can talk if properly helped!
Thousands of people have benefited from our work, which did not stop at having the facility of a clinic with all the services in one place; we also we offer two mobile programs, one for children and one for adults that have reached over 150 public and private schools, 23 indigenous and rural communities, more than 70 organizations and companies to whom we provide hearing tests and education wherever they are!
Not only have we dealt with and treated early detection, but we have achieved a great educational impact in Panama and the Latin American region to create awareness with print, digital and hybrid educational resources and events that have achieved participation from 21 countries. Our educational programs support parents, teachers, professionals and civil society in general and we maintain important alliances with foundations in El Salvador, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile and Venezuela to be a voice the need of closing the hearing health gap so widely suffered in the region.
Our work has recently been recognized- among more than 120 participants, as the winner of the "Unique Women in Panama Award". This inspires me to continue leaving footprints for a better country where more children enjoy the gift of sound and more parents, families and teachers fully understand their role in writing success stories for deaf kids.
Complementary actions such as having become the first foundation in Panama, member of Hidden Disabilities Sunflower (HDS) initiative (for non-visible disabilities) and being appointed Panama's Ambassador for HDS are actions that we know enhance our work to continue opening a new path where no one is left behind because of their hearing loss.
Please consider our work for this important award.