World Sleep Academy is an initiative of World Sleep Society, a non-profit organization of global sleep specialists whose mission is to advance sleep health worldwide. The purpose of World Sleep Academy is to provide accessible training in sleep medicine to healthcare workers, particularly those in communities underserved by sleep medicine specialists. World Sleep Academy is organized into three tiers of increasing complexity in sleep science and medicine topics. Courses are delivered entirely online and learning activities are predominantly asynchronous but supplemented with weekly live sessions with the lead faculty. Completing all three tiers of content takes one calendar year.

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

The World Hearing Day working group of the World Hearing Forum would like to thank you for your participation in World Hearing Day events in previous years and invite you to join us in this year’s World Hearing Day celebration on March 3^rd, 2023.  Your participation insures that this annual worldwide celebration will raise the profile of ear and hearing care in public opinion, in the world’s media, and on the global health agenda.

World Hearing Day 2023 is especially relevant because it will highlight the importance of integrating ear and hearing care within primary health care as an essential component of universal health coverage. With the theme “Ear and Hearing Care for All!”, we will focus our efforts on ensuring access to ear and hearing care to all who need it and advance ways in which this care can be delivered at the primary care level. The World Health Organization estimates that 60% of hearing loss care can be managed by primary care providers and will launch the Ear and Hearing Care Training Manual for Primary Healthcare Providers on March 3^rd.

You will find all you need to plan your activities at  www.worldhearingday.org [worldhearingday.org]. This site includes educational materials, flyers, posters and other useful materials (now available in 29 different languages) as well as a detail description of World Hearing Day and a picturesque report of activities from 77 different countries.  Please register your World Hearing Day events with the World Health Organization on this website and plan on reporting your activities after March 3rd, 2023. We have streamlined the registration process and once you have set up an account, the info of your clinic or organization will be stored for future access to the site.
The WHO encourages World Hearing Day participants to launch the Ear and Hearing Care Training Manual for Primary Healthcare Providers with presentations and events that target national program officers, directors of health, people with hearing loss, NGOs, and the media, but any activity, small or large, is worthwhile to raise awareness on this special day of celebration.  Some popular activities in past years include discussion panels, radio or talk-show participation, newspaper articles, interviews, or the distribution of WHO created flyers, t-shirts, badges. Everything helps to amplify the World Hearing Day message and make it “audible”.  Get involved with World Hearing Day and encourage others to join the global campaign. By uniting our efforts, we can help make Ear and Hearing Care a worldwide priority issue.
Some popular activities include:

• discussion panels at local hospitals

• free hearing screening booths or clinics

• radio or talk-show participation

• newspaper articles or interviews

• distribution of WHO created flyers, t-shirts, badges

• social media campaigns (there are also WHD GIFs and emoji’s)

• art or essay contests to describe living with hearing loss

Here are some helpful links to find additional information / connect with others:
For more information about World Hearing Day:
Register your event and download materials (available in 29 languages) : https://worldhearingday.org/ [worldhearingday.org]
WHO Activities for World Hearing Day: https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-hearing-day [who.int]
Toolkit to plan World Hearing Day activities: https://worldhearingday.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/World-Hearing-Day-TOOLKIT-for-planning-of-events.pdf [worldhearingday.org]
Make Listening Safe Campaign: https://www.who.int/activities/making-listening-safe [who.int]
World Report on Hearing: https://www.who.int/teams/noncommunicable-diseases/sensory-functions-disability-and-rehabilitation/highlighting-priorities-for-ear-and-hearing-care [who.int]
WHO World Hearing Day Launch Webinar: https://who.zoom.us/rec/play/FEwoCG4JUoE1NN_8O74AFvlv3yOobGUb90JiWefIo20fYfFUhpIFbL3bbI-vDBuqPnaDmXKIFoqwwg.lOuoyPMZfKzL3Om1?continueMode=true&_x_zm_rtaid=79LdL7t6T1GytJZN29DNEg.1673606507237.0e8e3df4e00cbc416ca47ec21db8424a&_x_zm_rhtaid=971
Social media sites to share your story and connect with Global Activities:
Coalition for Global Hearing Health Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/c4ghh/ [facebook.com]
Coalition for Global Hearing Health Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/globalhearinghealth/ [instagram.com]
World Hearing Forum Changemakers Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1119931818468512 [facebook.com]
Hashtags: #safelistening #worldhearingday #hearingcare
Let’s all celebrate World Hearing Day 2023!
Thank you on behalf of the entire World Hearing Day Working Group,
James E. Saunders, MD
Arun Agarwal, MD
Co-Chairs, World Hearing Day Working Group
World Hearing Forum