Nivel

What Nivel does

Nivel (legally Stichting Het Nivel, full name Nederlands Instituut voor Onderzoek van de Gezondheidszorg) is a Dutch public knowledge organization founded in 1965 and headquartered in Utrecht, Netherlands. It operates as a non-profit foundation without profit motive and conducts independent scientific research on Dutch healthcare across both primary and secondary care, holding a statutorily defined national function in this domain. The organization employs approximately 170 staff, of whom roughly 110 are scientists and 60 work in research-related or business-operations roles.

Nivel's core technology is a portfolio of longitudinal data-collection systems rather than a unified software product. These include the Nivel Zorgregistraties Eerste Lijn, which aggregates routine primary-care data from hundreds of Dutch healthcare providers; the Nivel Beroepenregistraties in de Zorg, which monitors labor-market trends among GPs, midwives, exercise therapists, and occupational therapists; a Communication in Healthcare Database containing anonymized video and audio observations; and a set of consumer and patient panels (including ~4,000 chronic-illness participants, ~500 people with intellectual disabilities plus ~350 relatives, and a lung-disease panel). Together these assets form a multi-decade longitudinal view of Dutch primary care and patient experience.

Nivel's revenue model is structurally based on Dutch public funding rather than commercial sales. The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) and ZonMw (Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development) are the primary commissioners, funding programs that include legislation evaluations (Youth Act, Organ Donation Act, Health Insurance Act, Wkkgz), policy studies, and ongoing statistics production. External researchers and organizations can additionally request paid access to Nivel's panels and data. All research results are statutorily required to be made publicly available, so the institute effectively operates as a publicly funded research utility whose outputs are open-access. Customers therefore split into a primary base of Dutch government and policy stakeholders, with secondary users including healthcare providers, healthcare insurers (for kiesBeter.nl quality comparisons), and external academic researchers.

Name

Nivel

Legal name

Stichting Het Nivel

Website

https://nivel.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Nivel is a Dutch non-profit public knowledge organization founded in 1965 that conducts independent scientific research on Dutch primary and secondary healthcare. It operates longitudinal registries, professional labor-market databases, and consumer/patient panels, funded primarily by the Ministry of VWS and ZonMw, serving government, healthcare providers, insurers, and external researchers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Health Services Research

NAICS

Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

akta.pro primary industry

Policy, Regulatory & Public Affairs Research (BPAHALAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Industry & Sector Research (Syndicated/Custom) (BPAHALAE)

Keywords

• Health services research
• Healthcare registries
• Patient panel research
• Primary care research
• Healthcare policy evaluation

Headquarters

HQ city

Utrecht

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government Research Funding: As a public knowledge organization without profit motive, Nivel conducts research funded primarily by government bodies, particularly the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) and ZonMw (Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development).
2. External Research Services: External organizations and researchers can request and pay for access to Nivel's panels, registrations, and healthcare data for specific research purposes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Nivel (Nederlands Instituut voor Onderzoek van de Gezondheidszorg) is a Dutch public knowledge organization that conducts independent scientific research on healthcare. It operates a portfolio of healthcare registries and consumer/professional panels that collect longitudinal data on Dutch primary and secondary care, and delivers publications, statistics, policy evaluations, advisory services and training to government, healthcare providers and researchers.

Product overview

Nivel is a Dutch public knowledge organization (Nederlands Instituut voor Onderzoek van de Gezondheidszorg) that conducts scientific research on healthcare. Rather than a unified software product, Nivel offers a portfolio of data collection services: healthcare registries that aggregate routine data from primary care providers, professional registries monitoring labor market trends, and consumer/patient panels that gather opinions and experiences through surveys. External organizations and researchers can request access to Nivel's data for research purposes. The research is organized thematically through programs covering areas such as primary care, elderly care, healthcare quality, and health systems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Nivel Zorgregistraties Eerste Lijn Registry system that collects routine care data from primary care providers (general practitioners, physiotherapists, dietitians, speech therapists) and delivers disease and healthcare figures for research purposes.
• Nivel Beroepenregistraties in de Zorg Professional registry monitoring the labor market and careers of four primary care professions: general practitioners, midwives, and exercise and occupational therapists.
• Nivel Panel Verpleging & Verzorging Panel of nurses and care providers used for surveys on professional topics and work experiences in nursing and elderly care.
• Nivel Consumentenpanel Gezondheidszorg Consumer panel for researching experiences and opinions of citizens regarding healthcare topics among the general population or specific subgroups.
• Nivel Panel Samen Sterk Panel of approximately 4,000 independently living people with chronic conditions for collecting information about health, care experiences, and participation.
• Nivel Panel Samen Leven Panel of approximately 500 people with mild or moderate intellectual disabilities and 350 relatives for research on living situations and support needs.
• Nivel Panel van Mensen met een Longziekte Panel monitoring the care and living situation of people with asthma, COPD, and rare lung diseases through the Longmonitor survey.
• Nivel Databank Communicatie in de Gezondheidszorg Repository of video and audio recordings of anonymized healthcare provider-patient communication for use in education, information, and policy support.
• Advies en Training (Advisory and Training) Advisory and training services based on Nivel research for healthcare organisations and policymakers.
• Zorg en ziekte in cijfers (Healthcare statistics and disease figures) Publicly available healthcare statistics and weekly disease figures, including the Griepcentraal weekly flu figures for the Netherlands and annual primary care figures.

Quantifiable outcome

• Griepcentraal provides weekly flu figures for the Netherlands
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam / Amsterdam UMCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on various research projects including the OPEN project on open handling of complaints and incidents in healthcare. Joint research on patient safety, palliative care quality, and organ donation legislation.
• Radboud Universiteit NijmegencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnerships where Nivel researchers hold chairs, including Ronald Batenburg as professor of Labour and Organization Issues in Healthcare, and Sandra van Dulmen as professor of Communication in Healthcare.
• Universiteit MaastrichtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnerships including Jany Rademakers as professor of Health Skills and Patient Participation at Maastricht University, and Judith de Jong as professor of Healthcare System and Steering.
• Tilburg UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership with Robert Verheij holding a chair in Transparency in Care from Patient Perspective at Tranzo, Tilburg University.
• Rijksuniversiteit GroningencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnerships including Liset van Dijk as professor of Pharmaceutical Care Research, and Michel Dückers as professor of Crises, Safety and Health.
• Universiteit UtrechtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership with Peter Groenewegen as professor of Social and Geographic Aspects of Health and Care.
• Nederlands JeugdinstituutminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on research into youth mental health care and the Youth Act implementation.
• Stichting AlexanderminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration partner in research into youth care.
• Universiteit van Amsterdam (UvA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProject partner in the evaluation of the Wet kwaliteit, klachten en geschillen zorg (Wkkgz), contributing legal expertise.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Zorginstituut Nederland: Dutch national knowledge organization that advises on the quality, efficacy, and affordability of healthcare, including quality measurement and care-purchasing guidance. Comparable to Nivel as a publicly mandated, Netherlands-based health-services knowledge body producing evidence for policy and practice.
• CBS (Statistics Netherlands): Dutch national statistical office producing demographic, social, and health statistics. Comparable to Nivel as a publicly funded, Netherlands-based data and research infrastructure organization generating national statistics used in policy decisions.
• RIVM (National Institute for Public Health and the Environment): Dutch government knowledge institute providing public-health research, monitoring, and advisory services. Closely comparable to Nivel because both operate as statutorily mandated, publicly funded health research institutes producing evidence used by the Ministry of VWS and Dutch policy makers.

Regional players

• Sciensano: Belgian public health and animal health research institute conducting scientific research, surveillance, and policy advice. Comparable to Nivel as a neighboring-country public-knowledge research organization focused on health services, public health, and policy support, but operating in Belgium rather than the Netherlands.
• The King's Fund: UK-based independent health think tank producing policy analysis, leadership development, and research on health services. Comparable to Nivel as an independent health-services knowledge organization advising policy makers, but operating in the UK and offering a wider policy/leadership scope.
• KCE (Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre): Belgian federal research center producing scientific analyses and policy recommendations on healthcare. Comparable to Nivel because it is publicly funded, conducts independent health-services research, and produces evidence used by government for healthcare policy.
• Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI): Norway's leading public health agency conducting research, surveillance, and health-services analysis. Comparable to Nivel as a European national public-health knowledge institute delivering policy-relevant health research, but operating in Norway rather than the Netherlands.

Broad incumbents

• IQVIA: Global commercial health data, analytics, and research-services provider. Comparable to Nivel because IQVIA operates large-scale healthcare registries, real-world data platforms, and policy-relevant health research, but as a much larger commercial, multinational entity rather than a Dutch non-profit.
• RAND Health: Major US-based nonprofit research organization with a dedicated health division producing health-services research, policy analysis, and quality measurement. Comparable to Nivel as a large-scale, independent health research organization, but operating as a much broader, global consultancy rather than a Dutch national institute.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/nivelonderzoek
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nivel

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nivel