Rhona Togher, CEO, Restored Hearing
The latest start-up in our One to Watch series is Restored Hearing, a new venture that is pioneering therapeutic solutions for people who suffer from tinnitus.
The idea for Restored Hearing was first spawned in 2009 when then Leaving Cert students Rhona Togher and Eimear O’Carroll entered the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition, with the help of their physics teacher Anthony Carolan.
“We wanted to design a therapy for sufferers of temporary tinnitus, the ringing in your ears experienced by those who have been over exposed to loud noise. What we developed was a one-minute sound therapy for sufferers,” explains Togher, who is now CEO at Restored Hearing.
Since setting up Restored Hearing along with Carolan, both Togher and O’Carroll have gone on to study physics at University College Dublin and the University of Edinburgh respectively, while still developing the business, which is now based at NovaUCD.
“Since developing the therapy we have set up a website for anyone to avail of it. Our focus has always been on making innovative solutions for auditory problems,” says Togher.
She says the company is working on further solutions, including noise-cancelling headphones.
“We are also starting a clinical trial on our tinnitus therapy in September that will run for two years and we hope to have great results from this.
“The launch of our new product in the next year will also be the first time we branch out and grow the business. We hope that this will only be the first in a wide range of products to come from Restored Hearing,” she adds.
Check out our video interview with Restored Hearing’s CEO Rhona Togher:
Restored Hearing is supported by Enterprise Ireland, the Irish Government organisation responsible for the development and growth of Irish enterprises in world markets. Its High Potential Start-Up (HPSU) team provides support and advice to entrepreneurs and early stage companies that are considered by Enterprise Ireland to have an innovative product, service or technology, and have the potential to achieve exports sales and create employment. Further information here.
The One to Watch series is made possible through the support of NDRC, HBAN and Enterprise Ireland
