Hearing Health Projects
The Hearing Health Otology Project began in 2007 when Dr. Roland was introduced to the faculty and residents of the Otolaryngology Department at Mulago Hospital (the largest tertiary referral public hospital in Uganda) and Makerere University. Collaboratively they began delivering teaching sessions and lectures, providing operative training, examining, and treating patients with ear diseases in the clinic. After that initial successful visit, the Ugandan team expressed the need for more training and capacity building in Otology and Hearing Health Care and a formal program was established.The goal of the program included acquiring instruments for the clinic and operating rooms, developing a curriculum to be incorporated into the Otolaryngology training program in Kampala, and organizing regular visits to Uganda by the NYU team. Dr Chirtopher Ndoleriire was an intern, in his first year of training in Otolaryngology, at the time and over the years has become a faculty member and is now the Chairperson of the Department and a full time Otologist.
Resident & Trainee Education
The faculty at Makerere University and Mulago Hospital incorporated hearing health and otology into the resident training program based on the NYU Resident Training Goals and Objectives. The curriculum includes:
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Performing and understanding basic and advanced audiologic testing.
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Performing complete otologic examination, reviewing and using imaging, such at CT scan and MRI of the outer, middle and inner ear.
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Treating infectious, neoplastic and inflammatory disease of the ear and cranial nerves.
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Performing curative surgery for diseases of the outer, middle and inner ear including cholesteatoma, chronic suppurative otitis, tumors and hearing loss (middle ear ossicle reconstruction, cochlear implants).
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Designed a temporal bone surgical training facility, first in Uganda, for trainees and faculty to learn ear surgery with cadaver temporal bones. The first formal temporal bone training course was organized in March,2023. Cadaver temporal bones are used to teach the trainees efficient and effective ear surgery before they engage with live patient care.
Numerous surgical cases of complicated ear diseases have been performed with the residents and faculty of Makerere University and Mulago Hospital.
Surgical Training
Dr. Roland travels with a team from NYU Langone Medical Center of faculty, residents and nurses twice a year to Uganda to assist with surgeries and train the residents and faculty at Makerere University's and Mulago Hospital on most up to date surgical techniques and practices.
In 2007 the team successfully performed the first ever cochlear implant in an adult in Uganda. A cochlear implant is a device used to restore hearing in deaf children and adults. Since that time numerous cochlear implant surgeries have been performed in deaf adults and children with the Ugandan physicians.
Dr. Roland also assisted with the design and creation of two new state of the art surgical suites for ear surgery which opened for full operation in 2023. This facility is at the Makerere University Hospital.
Equipment
Dr. Roland has procured basic and advanced hearing testing equipment and delivered it to Uganda. This equipment is used to evaluate patients but also to complete many studies and projects, most of which are published in peer reviewed journals. (see reference list below). A formal audiologic testing and cochlear implant testing center is now complete and evaluating patients.
Examples of equipment supplied include: microscopes, otologic drills and instruments, exam chairs, audiology testing booths and an intraoperative facial nerve monitoring device so that safe and effective surgical care can be rendered.
Dr. Roland and his team helped establish and support an audiology and cochlear implant mapping facility with testing equipment in 2022. This facility is essential to test and treat patients with hearing loss and to maximize performance with cochlear implants.
Conferences & Travel Grants
Dr. Roland and his team deliver conferences and teaching sessions twice a year. Online conferences continue at other times and have been incorporated into the Ugandan resident training curriculum.
Drs. Roland and Pfeffer have hosted multiple Ugandan faculty and trainees in NY so that they can attend courses, and observe surgeries and other clinic care at New York University..
