June 11, 2014

Hearing Help For Africa

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Dr. Green hosts Ambassador/General Consul Geoffrey I. Teneilabe and the Nigerian Delegation at JHBI

Friday, June 6, 2014

J. Douglas Green Jr., MD, FACS, hosted Nigerian diplomats at JHBI www.jhbi.org,  who were in town attending the USA vs Nigeria soccer tournament at Jacksonville’s EverBank Field. The purpose of the JHBI and The Hearing Center tour and subsequent meeting was to introduce the visitors to the nonprofit organization, Hearing Help For Africa (HHFA), a 501(c)3 dedicated to giving the Gift of Hearing by surgically inserting cochlear implants into adults and children in need in Africa, especially Nigeria.

City of Jacksonville leaders, specifically Tony Hill, director of Federal Policy, and Betzy Santiago, Special Assistant to the Mayor/International Office, brought Ambassador Geoffrey I. Teneilabe, former Ambassador (Washington, DC), now Consul General of Nigeria (Atlanta, GA), and a Nigerian entourage, which included local Nigerian leaders, as well.

HHFA is JHBI’s 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to furthering the healing ministry of Christ in Africa through medical education, as well as the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the ear and related structures. Its goal is to improve the quality of life for Africans.

After touring The Hearing Center, the international guests were greeted by Dr. Green, his wife, Kelley, and JHBI staff members in the conference room. Here they joined Lori Rakita, AuD, who was online via WebEx with hospital staff from Jos, Nigeria, where Dr. Green travels during the year to perform cochlear implant surgery.

The Jos hospital staff was introduced to the Nigerian guests, and Dr. Green explained how he “remotely” calibrates cochlear implants that were surgically inserted via the Internet from his office half way around the world.

The following evening, Dr. Green was the guest of Mayor Alvin Brown in the Nigerian Suite at EverBank Stadium so he could meet Nigerian Ambassador Professor Adebowale Adefuye on the occasion of the Nigeria vs USA soccer game, the last before the 2014 World Cup.

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Dr. Green hosts the Nigerian Delegation at JHBI to introduce them to Hearing Help For Africa, the non-profit dedicated to giving the Gift of Hearing to those in need in Africa.

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