ENT doctor Arvid Kropveld of the ETZ hospital in Tilburg has had a close relationship with Nepal for a number of years. Every so often he flies to the Asian high mountains to help children with hearing problems. In addition to taking good care of the children, he also tries to give them a better future in this way. On Friday Kropveld will leave for Nepal with a team of seven people.
“One in four children in Nepal has hearing problems,” says Kropveld in Brabant Today. “Our trip this time has a dual purpose: we are going to train and retrain people to measure the hearing aids of the children. In addition, we are going to educate the ENT doctors in Nepal about operating on ears.”
In 2016 he heard from a dentist friend that there are many children with hearing problems in Nepal. “I went there to have a look. The good care that we have in the Netherlands is not self-evident there. If you get to an ear disease or an ear infection in time, you prevent worse. It is important to take good care of your ears. also foster understanding in the schools.”
“A hearing-impaired child only gets half of what is said in class.”
The ability to hear well is very important for the future of children. “A hearing-impaired child only gets half of what is said in the class. A pupil cannot get the best out of his qualities. Nepal is such a poor country, you need all the talents there to escape poverty. You can only build a bright future with the right knowledge and a good education.”
To achieve this for the Nepalese children with hearing problems, Kropveld founded the Child and Ear Foundation on. “I think we are very privileged in the Netherlands. If you have a talent here, you will end up well in the end. That is not the case in Nepal. Talented children attend schools for the deaf because, for example, there is no money for hearing aids. I just want to give something back.”
“Since the hearing aids, they can dream of a bright future.”
Kropveld gets a lot of satisfaction from his work for the foundation. “In 2018 we gave hearing aids to children who were in boarding school. Far away from their families. They went home about three times a year and only used sign language there. Since the hearing aids they live at home, receive regular education and can dream of a bright future.”
The foundation’s trips are funded by donations and can be followed on the internet.