Chicago / Stäfa, Switzerland (December 2007) - The Hear the World Foundation today announced that it has created an award named after Pro. Richard Seewald, an internationally renowned and respected pediatric audiologist, to honor his dedication to children with hearing loss. The award is funded by the foundation with an annual budget of $20,000 and will be awarded for the first time in April 2008. The announcement of the award was made on the occasion of the pediatric conference held in Chicago from December 6-8, 2007.
The Hear the World Foundation is a part of the Hear the World initiative, a non-profit initiative launched by hearing device manufacturer Phonak. The initiative's mission is to educate the public on the importance of hearing, the social and emotional implications of hearing loss and the available solutions for those with hearing loss. Through the foundation, Phonak supports projects worldwide on the topic of hearing by financing, providing hearing systems and information material.
The Richard Seewald Pediatric Award fits extremely well to the foundation's targets and acknowledges Dr. Seewald's immense contribution to pediatric audiology and his ongoing long-term collaboration with Phonak. "I am honored and deeply touched by this award and look forward to my future collaborations with the Hear the World Foundation," said Richard Seewald upon the announcement of the award. He will be working out details of the award soon together with the foundation's advisory board and the board of directors. This will allow Dr. Seewald to have a personal impact on the use of the funds.
For the past 20 years, Dr. Richard Seewald's work has been focused on issues that pertain to the selection and fitting of amplification in infants and young children. He is known internationally for his work in developing the Desired Sensation Level (DSL) Method for pediatric hearing instrument fitting. A Principal Investigator at the National Centre for Audiology in London, Ontario, he is also a Professor in the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Western Ontario, and currently holds the Canada Research Chair in Childhood Hearing. Dr. Seewald is also the chairman of the Phonak Pediatric Advisory Board.
About Hear the World
Hear the World is a global initiative by hearing device manufacturer Phonak created to raise awareness about the importance of hearing. The initiative calls attention to the social and emotional impact of hearing loss and addresses prevention of and solutions to a problem that affects more than 10% of the world's population.
Some of the world-renowned musicians who support Hear the World include tenor and conductor Plácido Domingo, Bryan Adams, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Joss Stone, Harry Belafonte, Moby, Amy Winehouse and Common. Through the Hear the World Foundation, Phonak supports charitable organizations and projects focused on helping people with a hearing loss.
For more information, please visit www.hear-the-world.com, www.phonak.com or you may also visit the Phonak Web Channel on Audiology Online.
