Rande, a 36-year-old Syrian refugee woman who fled the war in Syria, took refuge in Turkey via southeastern province of Hatay in 2016. Her 38-year-old husband, Ali Shawi, irreguarly migrated to Turkey six months ago prior to Rende’s arrival for finding a job and house.
Rande, Ali and their three children were living in Syria’s Aleppo before fleeing to Turkey. Due to heavy bombardment and armed conflicts in Aleppo, the family lost its house. When they started to be in fear of their life, Rande and Ali decided to leave the country in the hope of a new beginning for the future of their children.
After a harsh migration journey to Turkey via Hatay, the father, Ali, settled in the western coastal city of Izmir and then his wife, Rande, and their three children arrived in. All the family members started a new life in Izmir where they have been legally registered by the Turkish authorities under “Temporary Protection Regulation” which grants residence permit to Syrian nationals in the country .
In Turkey, Ali, as the only breadwinner of the family, started to work as a shoemaker, earning just 3000 Turkish Lira (~$160), while their family has now been bigger with the two little babies born in the new country they took refuge.
Kader, one of the children of the family who was born just before their migration from Syria, has been suffering from congenital hearing loss, and has no ability to speak due to her hearing impairment.
Kader should have started the primary school at the beginning of last year, but the school authorities did not accept her enrolment on the ground that she might have difficulties during the learning period since she cannot speak and hear.
Doctors told the family that a cochlear implant (bionic ear) must be surgically implanted to Kader, which allows the hearing to occur electronically, bypassing the ear phase, and transmitting the message directly to the acoustic (cochlear) nerve.
Following her referral to Doctors of the World (DoTW) Turkey by the Turkish Red Crescent, a doctor working at DoTW Turkey’s Izmir office examined Kader’s medical process. The doctor informed that there is no age limit for the cochlear implant surgery but the risk of success of the surgery may decrease after the age of five. Therefore, performing the surgery at earlier stage is very significant in terms of development of Kader’s ability to speak effectively. So if Kader does not undergo this surgery, she would not be able hear at all in the future.
“My daughter hardly even express the words, ‘mother’ and ‘father’. I want my child to continue her education for a better future herself. This is why I really want this surgery so that Kader could go to school,” Rande says.
After a series of medical examination and consultation, DoTW Turkey, with the support of U.S. Department of State: Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, provided Kader with necessary cochlear implant device, and a team a team of doctors, including Dr. Ibrahim Cukurova, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gül Caner Mercan, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. İlker Burak Arslan, performed Kader’s inner ear surgery in November to place the implant.
In January 2023, approximately 2 months after the surgery, doctors installed the device behind the ear at Adolescent Counseling and Health Service Center (ÇİDEM).
Kader is now able hear his parents and can see the colors of world more brightly with the sounds of nature.
Kader’s parents, Rande and Ali, are dreaming the day that their daughter could start speaking and continue to her education just like her peers.
