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Modification published on 08/15/2016
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Modification published on 08/15/2016
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This announcement solicits applications for the Universal Newborn Hearing Screening and Intervention Program. The purpose of this program is to develop a comprehensive and coordinated[1] statewide[2] Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) system of care targeted towards ensuring that newborns and infants are receiving appropriate and timely services, including screening, evaluation, diagnosis, and early intervention (EI). This purpose will be achieved by focusing efforts on: 1) increasing health professionals’ engagement within and knowledge of the EHDI system, 2) improving access to EI services and language acquisition, and 3) improving family engagement, partnership, and leadership within the EHDI programs and systems. Recipients will be required to: Engage health care professionals and families in learning communities to assure participants have information on how to effectively contribute to the health care system as it relates to deaf or hard of hearing children and their families; Develop and foster collaborative partnerships with EI programs to ensure that children who are deaf or hard of hearing have access to the necessary referral(s), care coordination, and pertinent services that will support language acquisition; and Address the importance of families within the EHDI system by incorporating family members within the learning communities as well as facilitating partnerships between families and various professionals and programs within the EHDI system. A public health approach to systems alignment for improving and protecting community health and well-being will be important. A strong state EHDI system should be aligned with other public health and/or service programs within the state (i.e., partnering and collaborating with Maternal and Child Health programs such as MCH Title V Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN) Program, newborn bloodspot screening program, home visiting, Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), Early Head Start, Family-to-Family Health Information Centers, etc.). Program Goal: The goal of the program is to support the development of statewide programs and systems of care that ensure that deaf or hard of hearing children are identified through newborn and infant hearing screening and receive evaluation, diagnosis, and appropriate intervention that optimize their language, literacy, and social-emotional development. Program Objectives: To increase by 30 percent from baseline (initial collection of data which serves as a basis for comparison with the subsequently acquired data) the number of newborns and infants who receive timely diagnosis per Joint Committee on Infant Hearing (JCIH)[3] recommended practice guidelines by the end of the three (3) year project period. Baseline data will be based upon the 2014 CDC EHDI Hearing Screening & Follow-up Survey (HSFS). To increase by 25 percent from baseline the number of newborns and infants who receive timely referral to EI per JCIH recommended practice guidelines by the end of the three (3) year project period. Baseline data will be based upon the 2014 CDC EHDI Hearing Screening & Follow-up Survey (HSFS). To increase by 20 percent from baseline the number of newborns and infants identified to be deaf or hard of hearing enrolled in EI services within JCIH recommended practice guidelines by the end of the three (3) year project period. Baseline data will be based upon the 2014 CDC EHDI Hearing Screening & Follow-up Survey (HSFS). All funded (100 percent) entities will develop partnerships supported by a memorandum of understanding with identified statewide, family-based organizations or programs that provide family support to families/parents/caregivers of newborns and infants who are deaf or hard of hearing by the end of the three (3) year project period. Program Requirements: Recipients will be expected to perform the following activities: Establish and implement a multidisciplinary program advisory group or committee to provide advice to the recipient on potential mechanisms to achieve project objectives and strategies. This program advisory committee should include stakeholders that reflect the comprehensive EHDI system, including health care professionals (e.g., clinicians who deliver pediatric primary care, pediatric specialists, nurses, EI providers, audiologists, etc.), parents/families of deaf or hard of hearing children, and deaf or hard of hearing individuals. The advisory committee should comprise a minimum of 25 percent parents/family members of infants/children who are deaf or hard of hearing and/or deaf or hard of hearing individuals. The program advisory committee, when applicable, should include representation from the following organizations within the state: Birthing Facilities State/territory offices/agencies responsible for the implementation of Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) State/territory chapters of the American Academy of Pediatrics State/territory Home Visiting Programs State/territory Title V Programs (MCH and CYSHCN) Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) Programs State/territory schools for the Deaf State/territory offices of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing An organization with expertise in addressing diversity, health equity and cultural competency Family Organizations (e.g., Family-to-Family health information centers, Hands and Voices, Family Voices) WIC Early Head Start State/Territory Medicaid agencies Develop a state-based learning community for pediatric health care professionals and families to increase knowledge and engagement within the EHDI system. The learning community will address the importance of early hearing detection and intervention and active family engagement within the EHDI system. For the purposes of this FOA, a learning community is defined as a select group of potential adopters and stakeholders who engage in a shared learning process to facilitate adaptation and implementation of innovations.[4] Pediatric health care professionals from various health care organizations (e.g., hospitals, federally qualified health centers, community health centers, private pediatric medical practices, etc.) will participate in the learning community. The learning community teams should include a clinician who delivers pediatric primary care, a practice or community based care coordinator, and a family member of a deaf or hard of hearing child. Recipients will be responsible for presenting and engaging participants in the learning community with information on how to effectively contribute to and participate in the EHDI system as well as understand the importance of active family engagement within the EHDI system. The participation in learning communities can be virtual in design. The learning community will address the following: Training regarding the current JCIH 1-3-6 timeline recommendations[5] and the appropriate methods to address them; Significant risk factors for late-onset early childhood hearing loss; Peer to peer information sharing among participants and, where applicable, the American Academy of Pediatrics Chapter Champions; Improving care coordination through the patient/family-centered medical home model,[6] including the surveillance of infants and children that need to be screened, followed-up or enrolled in EI programs; Partnering with state/territory Title V CYSHCN programs on systems integration and family centered care coordination; Providing family-centered care (an approach to care that assures the health and well-being of their families through a respectful family-professional partnership) that is culturally competent (reflecting a set of values, behaviors, attitudes, and practices within a system, organization, or program or among individuals which enables t
