18th ANNUAL EARLY HEARING DETECTION & INTERVENTION MEETING
March 3-5, 2019 • Chicago, IL
Maryland EHDI: Identifying Barriers and Improving Access to Care
The purpose of the Maryland Early Hearing Detection and Intervention program is to determine the hearing status of babies born in Maryland at the earliest possible age and to ensure access to early intervention services for babies identified with a non-typical hearing status. Maryland EHDI complies with JCIH 1-3-6 guidelines, in order to provide appropriate and timely interventions for babies with a non-typical hearing status. Improvements in the percentage of newborns who receive a newborn hearing screening (NBHS) have been immense (97.5% nationwide, 99.1% in Maryland). However, the same progress has not been achieved with transition from identification to intervention. While the loss to follow-up rate in Maryland is much lower than the national average (9% in Maryland vs. 25% nationwide), there still exist many barriers to care in the state of Maryland with great variability among counties and regions. As many as one out of three infants diagnosed with a non-typical hearing status do not receive appropriate intervention services by six months of age. This poster will present information on the various barriers to care in Maryland, including a growing number of families living in poverty and without adequate insurance coverage, along with a significant population of non-English speaking families. Information on points of access to services in the state of Maryland, such as the Infants and Toddlers program, the Child Find program, and Maryland School for the Deaf will be reviewed. Lastly, this presentation will discuss current initiatives in Maryland that aim to improve access to timely follow-up care for infants who do not pass their NBHS. This will include discussion of a current grant received by the Maryland EHDI program, which strives to develop a comprehensive statewide EHDI system of care to ensure that newborns and infants are receiving appropriate and timely services.
- Participants will describe three barriers to care/follow-up that Maryland has experienced.
- Participants will explain three strategies that Maryland is employing to reduce the “loss to follow-up” rates.
- Participants will be able to describe the benefits of parent partnerships in medical homes.
Poster:
18878_10524EveKronzek.pdf
Presenter: Amy Gaskin
Amy is the Director of Audiology at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. She has worked as a pediatric audiologist for over 20 years. She received a B.S. in Hearing and Speech Science from Towson University and an M.A. in Audiology at the University of Maryland. She also received an Au.D. from Arizona School for Health Sciences.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exist.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exist.
Eve Kronzek is a current fourth year audiology extern and LEND trainee at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore, Maryland. She received her B.A. in Hearing and Speech Sciences, and continued on in the Doctorate of Audiology program at the University of Maryland, College Park. Upon graduation, she aims to carry on her goal of working with the pediatric population, particularly with children with developmental disabilities.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exist.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exist.
Dorothy is the interim Director of Audiology and the Training Director for the Department of Audiology at the Kennedy Krieger Institute where she has been a pediatric audiologist for over 20 years. She received a B.S. in Biology from the Pennsylvania State University and an M.A. in Audiology at the University of Maryland. She also received an Au.D. from Central Michigan University.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Nonfinancial -