Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Sociodemographic Factors Influencing Pandemic-Era Ehdi Use And Access, Nicole Perez, David Adkins, Marissa Schuh, Jennifer B. Shinn, Lori Travis, Matthew L. Bush

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic impact on Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) programs is unknown. This research evaluated sociodemographic factors influencing adherence to EDHI diagnostic testing and the incidence of infant hearing loss during the pandemic.

Method: We evaluated EHDI adherence and incidence of hearing loss in Kentucky before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using univariate and multivariate analysis, we evaluated the association of these outcomes to sociodemographic variables.

Results: There were 71,206 births and 1,385 referred infant hearing screening tests during the study period. Infants during the pandemic had a 24% lower odds of hearing testing adherence (OR …

Assessing Impact Of Covid-19 Pandemic On Receipt And Timeliness Of Newborn Hearing Screening And Diagnostic Services Among Infants Born In Four States, Suhana Ema, Sana Charania, Xidong Deng, Charles Rose, Craig A. Mason, Marcus Gaffney, Brandt Culpepper, Michael Lo, Tri Tran, Marcia Fort

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

The study compares receipt and timeliness of newborn hearing screening and follow-up diagnostic services between the pre-pandemic birth cohort and the pandemic birth cohort in four participating states. Findings from this study will help inform state Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) programs in the future should major public health event occur again.

The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Newborn Hearing Screening Programs In Western States, Nathan A. Blaseg, Hannah M. Williams, Shelby Jepperson, Jessica J. Messersmith

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

The primary objective of this study was to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on newborn hearing screening guideline adherence and the respective rates of screening, diagnosis, and intervention. This was a review of newborn hearing screening data compiled from the Departments of Health of six states for the time periods of March-September 2019 and March-September 2020. Endpoints included the numbers of live births as well as the numbers and timeframes of screening, diagnostic, and intervention events. Two-tailed paired t-tests were performed to determine statistical significance. 181,662 births in six states were assessed. Compared to March-September 2019, March-September 2020 …

Timeliness Of Ehdi Benchmarks In Infants With A Nicu Admission Greater Than Five Days: Analysis From A Retrospective Cohort, Caitlin Sapp, Tammy O'Hollearn, Elizabeth Ann Walker

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

The purpose of this study was to examine the timeline of early hearing healthcare in infants with a history of lengthy (> 5 days) admission to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) compared to non-NICU peers. We compiled four years of state Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) records from 156,335 infants using a statewide administrative database. We compared age at the time of newborn hearing screening, diagnostic audiological evaluation, and entry into early intervention in NICU infants and non-NICU infants. We also compared the proportion of NICU and non-NICU infants meeting prescriptive EHDI timing benchmarks based on the Joint …

Ehdi System Effectiveness: The Impact Of Community Collaboration, Kristina M. Blaiser, Gabriel Anne Bargen

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Early Hearing Detection and Intervention systems rely on collaborative, coordinated systems, yet, in actuality, collaboration is often reduced to periodic communication related to processes. This can be even more important in a state like Idaho where access to providers and resources are limited in rural and remote areas. Researchers at Idaho State University were awarded a grant to bring together key community stakeholders with the goal of evaluating and improving families’ journeys from newborn hearing screening to enrollment in Part B educational services. This paper will outline the process and information that was collected as part of the Idaho Community …

South Dakota Early Hearing Detection And Intervention Program: Using Teleaudiology To Conduct Infant Diagnostic Assessments, Hannah Williams, Emily Riley, Jessica Messersmith

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Teleaudiology allows patients and providers to bypass several economic and geographic barriers that impede the delivery and accessibility of audiological services. The South Dakota Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) program recognized this benefit and created a teleaudiology infrastructure for the diagnostic assessment of infants. Using a hub-and-spoke model, a certified pediatric audiologist at the hub site assesses infants located at two spoke sites in South Dakota. Remote control software applications are used to provide a synchronous method of service delivery. The audiologist’s test battery includes video otoscopy, tympanometry, and auditory brainstem response (ABR) testing. Since establishing the teleaudiology program, …

Supporting Families Of A Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing Child: Key Findings From A National Needs Assessment, Alyson C. Ward, Vicki Hunting, Diane D. Behl

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

This article reports findings from a national needs assessment to ascertain the needs of families of young children who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH), and what supports, resources and opportunities Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) programs and EHDI-contracted Family-based Organizations (FBOs) were providing to families. Results were intended to guide the activities of a federally funded technical assistance center charged with promoting Family Leadership in Language & Learning for families of children who are DHH. There were 458 completed surveys by parents of children who were DHH between the ages of 0-6. Surveys were completed by 56 …

Development Of A State-Wide Database Of Early Intervention And Educational Outcomes For Children Who Are Deaf/Hard Of Hearing, Alonzo T. Folger, Susan Wiley, Allyson Vanhorn, Wendy Grove, Nathan Dedino, Mallory Minter-Mohr, Ting Sa Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center And University Of Cincinnati College Of Medicine, Jareen Meinzen-Derr

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Children who are born deaf/hard of hearing (D/HH) are at increased risk for delays in language, cognitive and social-emotional development. Early identification through screening and early intervention (EI) can improve outcomes for children who are D/HH. However, a need remains to evaluate the effectiveness and practices of statewide programs for children who are D/HH. The Ohio EHDI Data Linkage Project was created as a state-wide collaborative that included multiple Ohio government agencies and an academic institution. The objective of the project was to develop and characterize population-based, longitudinal database that documents state-level services and outcomes for children who are D/HH …

Using Data To Improve Services For Infants With Hearing Loss: Linking Newborn Hearing Screening Records With Early Intervention Records, Maria Gonzalez, Lori Iarossi, Yan Wu, Ying Huang, Kirsten Siegenthaler

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

The purpose of this study was to match records of infants with permanent hearing loss from the New York Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Information System (NYEHDI-IS) to records of infants with permanent hearing loss receiving early intervention services from the New York State Early Intervention Program (NYSEIP) to identify areas in the state where hearing screening, diagnostic evaluations and referrals to the NYSEIP were not being made or documented in a timely manner. Data from 2014-2016 NYEHDI-IS and NYEIS information systems were matched using The Link King. There were 274 infants documented in NYEIS Information System as receiving early …

Progress In Standardization Of Reporting And Analysis Of Data From Early Hearing Detection And Intervention (Ehdi) Programs, Suhana Alam, Ashley Satterfield, Xidong Deng, Craig A. Mason

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Congenital hearing loss affects one to three of every 1,000 live born infants. If left undetected, it may negatively impact children through delayed speech and language development. To help avoid developmental delays and ensure that deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) infants are identified and receiving services as early as possible, complete and accurate data are crucial. Despite substantial progress made over the years, some children are still delayed in identification and/or lost to the early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) surveillance and tracking systems. Lack of standardization in data reporting contributes to this issue. This article discusses reasons for …

Wic Participation As A Risk Factor For Loss To Follow-Up In The Wisconsin Ehdi System, Elizabeth L. Seeliger, Rebecca A. Martin, Andrea N. Gromoske, Anne B. Harris

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

In 2011, Wisconsin’s Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) program, Wisconsin Sound Beginnings (WSB), developed multiple strategies to reduce loss to follow-up (LTFU) for babies who did not pass their newborn hearing screening: Medical Outreach, Family Outreach, Regional Outreach and WIC Alert. WSB evaluated the outcomes of babies identified as at-risk for LTFU to determine whether WIC participation was an indicator of their risk for LTFU. Additionally, WSB evaluated whether babies who were identified as at-risk for LTFU and receiving WIC services in two WIC projects serving areas and populations with known health disparities, were at even greater risk for …