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Definition and Treatment of Dyslexia

A Report by the Committee on Dyslexia of the Health Council of the Netherlands

D. C. M. Gersons-Wolfensberger, MD, is a scientific secretary at the Health Council of the Netherlands. Her interest is in topics on the interface of medicine and society. She has worked on school health care, home care, quality and allocation of care in oncology, and dyslexia. Her current work is on DNA diagnostics in common diseases.

Wied A. J. J. M. Ruijssenaars

Wied A. J. J. M. Ruijssenaars, PhD, is a full professor of special education and childcare at Leiden University in the Netherlands. His current interests include learning disabilities, assessment and decision making and the structure of intervention processes. Address: D. C. M. Gersons-Wolfensberger, Health Council of the Netherlands, PO Box 1236,228OCE, Rijswijk, The Netherlands.

A committee of the Health Council of the Netherlands prepared a report on the definition and treatment of dyslexia at the request of the Minister of Health, Welfare, and Sport (see Note). The Health Council, as charged by the Health Act, is to inform the government on the state of science with respect to public health issues. The Council is entirely funded by the government but otherwise completely independent (an independence guaranteed by law).

The committee was formed to answer questions regarding the provisions and funds needed for the treatment of persons with dyslexia, neuropsychological treatment modalities, in particular, and the role of speech and language therapists. Definitive decision making about reimbursement by the Dutch National Health Service for treatment by speech and language therapists in cases of dyslexia was on hold, pending the committee's report.

Specific attention was requested for the following aspects: the definition of dyslexia (the characteristic symptoms of this category of developmental language disabilities); the consequences of the proposed definition for indication and treatment; the appropriate methods of treatment; the involvement of several possible professionals (e.g., neuropsychologist, remedial teacher, speech and language therapist), as well as the role of the neurologist during and in relation to the treatment process; and those situations in which treatment should be the responsibility of the health care system. This article summarizes the committee's considerations and conclusions on these different aspects.

Journal of Learning Disabilities, Vol. 30, No. 2, 209-213 (1997)
DOI: 10.1177/002221949703000208


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