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ABSTRACT INFORMATION
Title: 'Powerful EHDI Community Partnerships' Track: 1-EHDI Program Enhancement Audience: Primary Audience: Secondary Audience: Tertiary Audeince: Keyword(s): Quality Improvement, Systems, Partnerships Learning Objectives: Participants will be able to describe a successful quality improvement strategy that has been tested and can be applied at the individual, community and systems level. Participants will be able to adapt strategies to improve services so that they are family centered, timely and reduce lost to follow up at all levels. Abstract: The Minnesota EHDI Community Collaborative is using a quality improvement process based on the Breakthrough Series Collaborative framework and the “Model for Improvement.” Community teams are working to enhance existing systems in their communities to reduce loss to follow-up and assure children with a hearing loss are offered early intervention (Part C) and are connected to early supports and services. Parents and caregivers of children with hearing loss and the providers who serve them face many challenges. There are currently seven teams across the state of Minnesota that participate in the EHDI Community Collaborative Project. This session will demonstrate strategies that have proven to be effective when making improvements including: 1) Reducing the number of families lost to follow up because of inaccurate contact information by utilizing local public health nurses who were able to find current contact information, 2) Improving follow up of infants born across state lines by discussing obstacles and defining a process with representatives from another state, and 3) Reducing unnecessary repeat hearing screenings by working with pediatricians to refer specifically for audiological evaluation. This session will illustrate the complex web of services families encounter and offer examples of the work local communities have done to improve system access and improve follow-up data. The success of this approach is a result of true collaboration and problem-solving at a local community level and is evident in the spread of successful models to additional communities. Handouts: Handout is not Available
SPEAKER INFORMATION
PRESENTER(S): Barb Dalbec - MN Dept Health      Credentials: RN, PHN       Barb Dalbecis a public health nurse and a Minnesota Department of Health supervisor of the Early Hearing Intervention Program. Along with her colleagues and partners, her role is to provide long-range planning and direction for the development, implementation, evaluation and improvement of a statewide EHDI system for children once they are identified with hearing loss. Curt Leitz - MN Hands & Voices      Credentials: parent guide       Curt Leitz is the father of a girl whose hearing loss was identified at age two; since then, he and his family have navigated support systems in three different states. Since 2007 he has worked as the Northeast Minnesota Parent Guide for Minnesota Hands and Voices, where his focus is direct parent-to-parent support and one of his keen interests is engaging fathers in their children’s support. Ida Middendorf - NA      Credentials: NA      Other Affiliations: NA       I graduated from the College of St. Catherine with a degree in Occupational Science and a minor in American Sign Language. I worked for several years as an Intervenor for Deaf Blind services of MN. I have spent the last several years as a stay at home mom with my six year old son, Toby and my 4 year old daughter, Clara. Clara was born with moderate to severe bilateral hearing loss. She was fitted with hearing aids at 2 months of age. Since Clara's birth I have been a strong advocate for early intervention. Betsy Schutte - Essentia Health-Duluth Clinic      Credentials: AuD      Other Affiliations: NA       Clinical Audiologist   AUTHOR(S): Barb Dalbec - MN Dept Health      Credentials: RN, PHN       BIO: Barb Dalbecis a public health nurse and a Minnesota Department of Health supervisor of the Early Hearing Intervention Program. Along with her colleagues and partners, her role is to provide long-range planning and direction for the development, implementation, evaluation and improvement of a statewide EHDI system for children once they are identified with hearing loss. Kirsten Coverstone - Minnesota Department of Health      Credentials: AuD       BIO: Kirsten Coverstone, AuD is Minnesota's EHDI statewide program Coordinator responsible for program planning, implementation, & evaluation of screening through diagnosis. She has focused her career specifically in the areas of newborn screening, diagnosis and follow-up. With a strong passion for quality improvement, she provides education and support to parents, professionals, and communities on Early Hearing Detection and Intervention. Candace Lindow Davies - MN Hands & Voices Lifetrack Resources      Credentials: Family Support Coordinator       BIO: Candace Lindow-Davies, a parent of a child who is deaf, provides support and advocacy for families with children who are deaf or hard of hearing. For the past ten years, Lindow-Davies has developed and coordinated services for the Minnesota Hands & Voices at Lifetrack Resources. She is a key EHDI leader playing the advocate, both for the individual needs of their child and on public policy issues.