The system that failed our child

ON March 3, at Portland Hospital in London, two-year-old Hannah White underwent surgery for the fitting of a small electronic device that provides a sense of sound to someone who is profoundly deaf.

It was two years after concerns about her hearing were first raised and in the wake of a number of visits to the Cork Audiology Service (CAS) where Hannah was diagnosed with mild hearing loss, not affecting her speech.

Hannah, from Mallow, Co Cork, was 12 weeks old when possible hearing difficulties first emerged in March 2007 during a visit to the family doctor. She was referred for further assessment to St Finbarr’s Hospital in Cork and subsequently to the CAS. Her mother, Monica, inquired about private treatment but was assured the CAS was a centre of excellence. She was assessed at the service in November 2007.