2026 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 15-17, 2026 • Jacksonville, FL
3/11/2025 | 2:15 PM - 2:45 PM | The Evolution of Data sharing between Louisiana Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (LAEHDI) and the Louisiana DeafBlind Project (LADBP) | 320
The Evolution of Data sharing between Louisiana Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (LAEHDI) and the Louisiana DeafBlind Project (LADBP)
Over the past decade, tremendous progress has been made in ensuring that families have access to hearing screening when a baby is born. Approximately 95% of babies now receive a hearing screen shortly after birth and most states have statutes in place related to universal newborn hearing screening. However, there is no similar program for vision screening of newborns, which causes children who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) and also have vision loss to be identified late. According to a white paper published by The National Center on Deafblindness, many children are not referred to State DeafBlind Projects (SDBPs) until after age 3, missing a crucial window for early intervention. Improved identification of children who are DeafBlind promotes earlier opportunities for families to interact with State DeafBlind Projects, which leads to timely support, and ultimately better outcomes for these children. Early referral to the SDBP promotes opportunities for families and early intervention providers to receive specialized support, training, and resources regarding the unique needs of the child and family. Additionally, this allows for greater teamwork between the EHDI program, the SDBP, Part C, Non-Part C, and family-to-family support. The collaboration and support of these programs promotes effective early intervention strategies tailored to the unique needs of children who are DeafBlind. In this presentation, the Louisiana EHDI program and Louisiana DeafBlind Project will share the process which led from the development of informal referral procedures for children who are DHH, and are also at risk for, or diagnosed with, vision loss to the development of a formalized Data Sharing Agreement. By examining efforts involved in moving from informal discussions to being the first state to successfully develop a formal Data Sharing Agreement, we anticipate this information will be helpful to state EHDI programs/SDBPs wishing to improve collaboration.
- Describe the benefits of building collaboration between state EHDI programs and state DeafBlind projects
- Give examples of opportunities for establishing and growing collaboration.
- Outline two to three action steps to initiate or improve collaboration.
Presentation:
3545975_18265DanaHubbard.pdf
Handouts:
Handout is not Available
Transcripts:
CART transcripts are NOT YET available, but will be posted shortly after the conference
Presenters/Authors
Nicky Gillies
(Primary Presenter), Louisiana DeafBlind Project, ngilli@lsuhsc.edu;
Nicky Gillies, M.S., NIC is the Project Director for the Louisiana DeafBlind Project (LADBP), housed in the Human Development Center at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center. Nicky has over a decade of experience as a nationally certified American Sign Language interpreter and completed her MS degree in ASL/English Interpreting Pedagogy at the University of North Florida in 2019. Prior to joining LADBP’s staff in 2021, Nicky worked as an interpreter, mentor, consultant, educator, and adjunct instructor in a variety of settings including higher education, the non-profit sector, and private practice. Nicky works with early intervention providers, school districts, and vocational rehabilitation professionals to identify and provide appropriate support to students birth through 22 who are DeafBlind. She designs professional development and training for educators who work with this highly diverse group of students. Nicky also provides educational planning and resource support to families of children and youth who are DeafBlind.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from Louisiana DeafBlind Project.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with Louisiana DeafBlind Project.
Nature: Nicky Gillies is the Project Director for the Louisiana DeafBlind Project at LSUHSC’s Human Development Center and receives a salary. The Louisiana DeafBlind Project is funded by a grant from the US Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Dana Hubbard
(Co-Presenter), Louisiana EHDI Program, Dana.Hubbard@la.gov;
Dana Hubbard, MEd, is the program manager for the Louisiana Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (LA EHDI) program, housed in the Louisiana Department of Health. She has a background in speech and hearing, as well as human development and family science. Dana has over 20 years of extensive and varied experience as a certified teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing, which includes early intervention support and education to families and children birth to age 3 in the Part C system and state school for the Deaf, as well as classroom and individual instruction with students, and their families, from ages 3-22, itinerantly and as coordinator of a district program for students who are deaf or hard of hearing.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Terri Ibieta
(Co-Presenter), Louisiana EHDI Program, terri.ibieta@la.gov;
Terri Ibieta, MEd, is the EHDI Coordinator for the Louisiana Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) Program and has worked with the EHDI program for the past 20 years. She is a certified teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing with 15 years of experience providing early intervention services to children who are deaf or hard of hearing and providing family education and training. She has also taught deaf/hard-of-hearing children in preschool and elementary educational settings.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with Louisiana Department of Health.
Nature: Employment.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.