Silent no more: Doctors help patients hear again after years of chronic pain

Carolyn Onzare, a guardian to Hillary Midenyo, 17, who was battling chronic otitis media after undergoing surgery at JOOTRH in Kisumu, on October 28, 2025. [Rodgers Otiso, Standard]

For 17-year-old Hillary Midenyo, every day began with pain, a sharp, throbbing ache in his ear that never seemed to end. Nights were worse, marked by sleeplessness, fever and the constant discharge of pus. His childhood has been defined by pain, endless hospital visits and missed school days.

Hillary’s guardian, Carolyn Onzare, knows the story all too well. She has been both a mother and a nurse to him, watching helplessly as the little boy battled a condition she barely understood.