The Cochlea Implant Programme was established in 1986. This was a long-held dream of Sir Patrick Eisdell-Moore and meant that New Zealanders could now take advantage of the latest technology available to people overseas. This operation offered profoundly deaf people the chance to be able to ‘hear’ again.
The results of the adult programme were encouraging and the DRF expanded its scope to include children who had lost their hearing early on. Many candidates were children who had lost their hearing as a result of a meningitis epidemic. Assessments of these children in turn highlighted the need to treat them as soon as possible after their meningitis as in some cases the meningitis had caused growth of bone in the inner-ear, which prevented a cochlear implant operation.
The work with the Cochlea Implant programme went from strength to strength and new research in this area is currently being funded.