“The moment that she heard us for the first time, it was just amazing,” reflects Ricardo, Nikki’s dad. “I literally started crying.” That moment was five years ago, thanks to cochlear implant surgery at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital.

“She’s now six years old and speaking to her, you have no idea that this child is deaf because of the technology that she has,” says Samuel Ostrower, MD, chief, Pediatric Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery Program.

Nikki was diagnosed before she was a month old. “In the beginning was the unknown. We didn’t know what we could do,” recalls Bianca, Nikki’s mom. “Until we met Dr. Ostrower,” Ricardo adds. “He’s so calm talking to you and for him, it’s like very easy.”

Dr. Ostrower performed Nikki’s implant surgery just before her first birthday.

“It gave me hope that she would be part of our world,” Bianca says. “Now she can hear. She sings and she can talk to us. It’s amazing that she can hear and be heard.