Question
A parent reported that their newborn, born on the eleventh day, did not receive a hospital notification for hearing screening. Since the newborn hearing screening program has been in effect for some time, should hospitals perform this examination on all newborns? If the hearing screening was not conducted at birth, can the child still go to the hospital for an examination now?
Answer
According to the “Technical Specifications for Newborn Hearing Screening” issued by the Ministry of Health, all newborns should undergo newborn hearing screening. Some infants may appear healthy at birth but may have hearing problems that developed in utero. Parents often find it difficult to detect their child’s hearing issues within the first year of life, and in most cases, language development delays are only noticed when the child is between 2 and 3 years old. If the hearing screening was not conducted at birth, parents can bring their child to the hospital for an examination within 42 days after birth.