DHVANI Program
Mapping the service journey of children with hearing impairment: A research study on DHVANI Program
In 2010 Save The Children India (STCI) implemented ‘Dhvani’, an early intervention program for children with hearing impairment. This was set up based on a recognized need for early identification and interventions with children with hearing loss.
The program focuses on providing testing, diagnostics and therapeutic intervention delivered by a team of professionals with the ultimate aim of enabling the child to be enrolled in mainstream primary school at the appropriate age.
The aim of the research study was to map the service journey of program children, from initiation into the program to successfully being integrated into mainstream schools. The aim was to understand the key levers for replication of this model and advocacy for better policies around education of children with special needs. The study highlighted that ‘Dhvani’ as a program is a high quality, scalable and replicable model. However, there are areas which could potentially be strengthened, focusing on multidimensional aspects and engaging multiple stakeholders.
Additionally, recommendations pertaining to systems and service delivery; demand generation; and policy advocacy were identified through the study, supporting future program interventions and further development.
