Baby twins Artie and Jack were born deaf. Watch them hear their mum's voice

An Australian-first surgery has allowed baby twins born deaf to hear their mother's voice for the first time together. The case has highlighted funding gaps for cochlear implant services in parts of the country. The NSW government has revealed the budget will contain more than $20 million to help fund cochlear implant services. Link copiedShareShare articleFor the first nine months of their young lives, baby twins Artie and Jack Porter lived in a world without sound. In what is believed to be an Australian-first, the boys had cochlear implant surgery on both ears on the same day. The eight-hour surgical feat had one main purpose — for Artie and Jack to hear their mother's voice at the same time. "It was incredible and emotional … for them to turn their head to the sound of my voice and see their little eyes widen at the sound of that was just, it's just mind blowing," their mother Emily Porter said. Artie and Jack Porter received cochlear implants on the same day in an Australian-first eight hour surgical feat. (ABC News: Billy Cooper) Artie and Jack were born premature and profoundly deaf because of a genetic condition. In April, they each had cochlear implants surgically placed under the skin, which then connect to an external processor with a magnet. Working together, these pieces bypass parts of the ear, sending sound directly to the hearing nerve. Dr Rithvik Reddy was the ENT surgeon who spent eight hours operating on the boys. (ABC News: Billy Cooper) Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) surgeon Rithvik Reddy and his team worked to allow the babies who have had many milestones together, to celebrate another. "The surgery on the day involved performing four cochlear implants on both boys on one day," Dr Reddy said. Emily holds Jack in recovery. (Supplied) "It was a bit of an organisational feat … but it makes such a big difference for them and the family to try and get it all done on the same day to minimise not just inconvenience, but also maximise the gain of them going through their journey together." Waiting anxiously outside the theatre room were Artie and Jack's parents. "It was a long, exhausting, emotional day," their father Ewan Porter said. "To see them with their little heads bandaged up after we had gone in there with them in really happy moods — it was really brutal." Ewan holds Jack with Artie in the pram as they sit in the waiting room ahead of the procedure. (Supplied) A few weeks after the surgery, a team from the Shepherd Centre — a provider that helps children with hearing loss — assembled in a small room in Wollongong, south of Sydney. Firstly, the cochlear implants were programmed to each of the boys' unique hearing needs. Then came the moment everyone had worked tirelessly for. A close up of a cochlear implant sound processor. (ABC News: Billy Cooper) The implants were activated, as the boys received a sensory awakening. "It was kind of the pinnacle day in this huge lead up," Emily Porter said. "It's really the start of the rest of their lives, it's the beginning of the next chapter," Ewan added. The wonder of the moment will alter the Porters' lives forever, however it comes at a cost. The way cochlear implants services are funded is complex, with both the federal and state governments picking up aspects of the care leading up to the surgery, the procedure itself, and the follow-up therapies. The parents of Jack and Artie say watching their children experience sound has been "joyful". (ABC News: Billy Cooper) In most states, this is fully funded by governments, however in New South Wales and the ACT there is an average gap of $7,000 per child per year. The Shepherd Centre CEO Alicia Davis said they cover this gap through philanthropic funds, and it was most acute in NSW, where the bulk of the more than 900 people it supported last year were based. "We cannot sustain continuing to fund this program and we shouldn't have to because it's a government responsibility," she said. Emily with three-year-old Tommy and twins Artie and Jack. (Supplied) Adult and paediatric ENT and Macquarie University professor Payal Mukherjee said because children born deaf had never been exposed to language or sound before, they needed extensive follow-up care. "Extra funding — to make sure that the entire journey of the child's care pathway is covered — is critical for them to get good outcomes and it's really important for equity," Professor Mukherjee said. Dr Payal Mukherjee said the twins needed extensive follow-up care. (ABC News: Billy Cooper) "If they are not funding everything equitably, patients do fall through the cracks." After the ABC approached the NSW government for comment, it revealed the upcoming state budget would contain more than $20 million over four years for The Shepherd Centre and another provider, NextSense. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park said the money would not only help fund the moment children hear sound for the first time, but also the ongoing speci

Baby twins Artie and Jack were born deaf. Watch them hear their mum's voice

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