Correspondence from Eastern Region
Hearing and visual impairments are fairly common conditions in our societies but the situation of a person living with both conditions known as deafblindness is not known by many Ghanaians.
Deafblindness is defined as the condition of little or no useful hearing and little or no useful sight.
Though it’s unknown how many deafblind persons live in Ghana, they are in the minority within the disability group, with most of them being neglected with their parents left to live with their fate.
Thankfully, the demonstration school for the deaf at Akwapim-Mampong in the Eastern Region has come to the aid of distressed parents with deafblind children.
The school currently provides education, rehabilitation and care facilities for one of the most neglected and under-served groups in society.
The deafblind department of the Demonstration School for the Deaf was established in 1978 and currently provides training for fifteen deafblind students undergoing training for the students. However, only six including a male and five females out of the number have reported since the school resumed academic activities on the 10th of January, 2023.
Just as pertains in many boarding facilities, there are ‘mothers’ or caregivers employed to provide basic care for the young ones in the various dormitories of the school as well as those with cognitive disorders.
Providing care for the deaf students with low vision and cognitive impairment means the caregivers must guide them every step of the way outside the classrooms. These include bathing, dressing, feeding and dressing most of them.
Amongst them is 14-year-old Vivian Bentum, born blind, partially hearing-impaired, physically-challenged and bound to a wheelchair and lives with cognitive impairment.
Madam Stella Adumeah, one of the caregivers who has worked at the school for over twenty-years and tasked with the responsibility of ensuring the upkeep of the students, said the condition of the deafblind students in particular demand regular care which they provide throughout the day.
Referring to Vivian, she said, “we have a girl who cannot walk, cannot talk, cannot see so we support her from morning to evening,” she said. “She cannot bath, she cannot walk, unless we take care [of her].”
Though she said it’s a difficult responsibility, her passion to put the smiles on the faces of the students keeps her going.
The deafblind students are accompanied to the dining hall together with their colleagues and thence to the Assembly grounds before finally making their way to their department accompanied by their instructors for the day’s activities.
Explaining what a typical day of a deafblind student entails, the head of department at the deafblind department of the demonstration school for the deaf, Mr. Boso Hudson Bishop Ernest described the department as unique, explaining that its core mandate was geared towards educating the students to enable them live independent lives.
“Our target is to give these children education so that they can live independent lives so we focus on the daily living activities,” said Mr. Boso, adding that the school’s curriculum was in line with that of the other special schools.
On a daily basis, Mr. Boso together with other instructors at the department take their students through various activities geared towards their physical, mental and academic development.
These are categorized into functional academic and vocational activities which include a circle time, individual activities, individual classroom activities, a gym session, etc.
As part of their individual activities, some of the students are sent to the kitchen to assist in cleaning, washing and other activities, mobility and orientation sessions where affected students are taken through a walk on campus, etc.
Asked if teaching them was difficult considering their condition, the department head answered, “considering their condition it is very difficult because their condition differs from one to another, that is why we don’t compete with anybody here. What you can do, that is what we’ll programme for you.”
To keep parents at pace with behavioral and communication skills acquired by their children, week-long Annual Parental Workshops are held for them at the school to help them communicate with their wards while encouraging the parents to accept the fate of their children.
Mr. Boso was of the belief that the training given deafblind children helps alleviate the burden on parents, guardians, society and the country as they become valuable assets to the nation and not a liability.
He called on society to accept persons living with the deafblindness. He said, “A deafblind child is a human being, for that matter, they should be accepted by the society out there because it is not the fault of theirs to be in this situation.”
According to the head of department, the students after a period of training must go home and live independent lives with their respective families.
15-year-old Lebene Vifah one of the students, is on the verge of losing her sight with her situation getting worse by the day.
It was quite heartbreaking learning that the deafblind students currently living with low vision were likely to lose their sight completely in the coming years.
Mr. Boso said most distraught parents of deafblind children live in denial, in the process attributing the situation to a punishment being meted out to them (parents) and sending the children to prayer camps for deliverance.
A student, 23-year-old Martha Kusi speaking through one of her instructors, Mr. Theodore Akleih during a mathematics session said she found the lesson easy and thanked her instructors for the support being given them.
Headmaster of the demonstration school for the deaf, Mr. Setumte Ametewee in an interview said the deafblind department of the school had qualified instructors to train the students to ensure that they can live conveniently in society.
“We actually want to focus on what skilled areas will be appropriate for them so that once they live the center, they’ll be useful to society,” he said.
He also encouraged parents not to hesitate to send their wards to the special schools for the necessary training.
Mr. Ametewee said, “If you’re a parent with a child with deafblindness and you live the child at home, the child becomes a burden unto you but if you’re able to bring the child to school with the instructors at the unit, they’ll be able to support.”
Government paying subventions to the basic and vocational school means students do not pay fees. However, this is barely enough to sustain the large student population of about 530.
Mr. Setumte Ametewee therefore appealed to various benevolent individuals, organizations and corporate organizations to continue to lend a hand of support to the school to enable it sustain the students.
The school therefore welcomes and receives regular donations from churches, corporate bodies, philanthropists and members of the public to feed the children during their stay on campus.
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