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F UNDING
The university research is mainly financed by the university medical centres’ own
funds (coming from direct government funding). Research at non-academic
institutions is mainly dependent on funding from the auditory industry and grants
from e.g. the ministry of health or the Health Insurance Board (CVZ). Only a
limited number of national and international projects are financed by indirect
government funding (ZonMw, NWO and EU respectively). Hearing research
scarcely benefits from charitable donations. There is a considerable willingness to
cooperate at both a national and international level, but due to the limited funds
the options cannot be developed to their fullest potential.
H EARING I NSTITUTE AND H EARING P LATFORM
To strengthen the research and improve its overall coordination, the Council
proposes the setting up of a (virtual) Hearing Institute in which all institutes and
organisations that carry out hearing research (university and non-academic)
should participate. The establishment of national priorities concerning the
research to be performed at this institute can be fed by a Hearing Platform made
up of representatives from interest groups and parents’ associations, research
institutes, manufacturers and professional organisations. This platform can also
contribute to an efficient implementation of the research results by, for example,
organising annual meetings at which the research is presented.
Structural funding is needed for hearing research. The Council recommends
making a sum of € 200,000-500,000 per year available for a longer period of time
(8 to 10 years) with an evaluation after 4 to 5 years. This strengthening of hearing
research will also require an investment in the training of physicists, (bio)medical
researchers, behavioural scientists, sociologists and epidemiologists.
The Nationale Hoorstichting (Dutch Hearing Foundation) and the Nationaal Overleg
Auditieve Hulpmiddelen (Dutch Committee for Hearing Aids) can provide the
starting point for establishing the Hearing Institute and Hearing Platform. It
should be investigated whether the hearing institute could eventually develop into
an institute focussed on more general communication disorders. The existing
expertise centres in this area, namely 'Early recognition' and 'Atypical
communication' can serve as an example and/or basis for this.
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