Friday, October 4, 2024
10/4/2024
American Academy of Pediatrics Project Abstract Project Title: Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) National Network/National EHDI Provider Education Center Address: American Academy of Pediatrics 345 Park Blvd, Itasca, IL 60413 Project Director: Debra Waldron, MD, MPH, FAAP Phone: 630/626-6110 Email: dwaldron@aap.org Website Address: www.aap.org Funding Request: $1,500,000 Approximately 1.8 of every 1,000 newborns in the US are documented as congenitally deaf or hard of hearing (DHH). Despite the success of newborn hearing screening, several gaps remain, including timely diagnosis and enrollment in Early Intervention (EI), especially among families living in poverty and those belonging to minoritized racial and ethnic groups who may experience systemic and structural barriers. These gaps significantly impact language acquisition and other outcomes for DHH children. To address these gaps, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) will collaborate as a consortium to establish the National Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Provider Education Center (National EHDI PEC). The National EHDI PEC will also participate in the EHDI National Network (Network) in partnership with the Implementation and Change Center and Family Leadership in Language and Learning Center. The purpose of both the Network and the National EHDI PEC is to advance EHDI systems of services nationwide so that DHH newborns, infants, and young children up to age 3 years receive appropriate supports and timely services to improve language acquisition outcomes. AAP and ASHA have a long history of expertise providing technical assistance and training (TA/T) to health care professionals, service providers, and other professionals within the EHDI system, EHDI content expertise, strong multi-disciplinary partnerships, and exp erience overseeing initiatives focused on improving systems of services for DHH children and their families. Building on this expertise, the National EHDI PEC will provide TA/T to a broad group of providers, conduct policy analysis and assessment, expand and support partnerships among EHDI system stakeholders, develop and disseminate evidence-based/informed recommendations and resources, and evaluate activities to improve confidence and training for health care and allied service professionals who screen, diagnose, and provide services to infants, children, and families interacting with the EHDI system. The National EHDI PEC will approach its work with a health equity lens and utilize the MCHB Blueprint for Change: Guiding Principles for a System of Services for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN) as a guiding framework for its efforts. The target audience for both the Network and National EHDI PEC is broad and includes state/territory EHDI coordinators, families of DHH children, Deaf adults, pediatricians, otolaryngologists, nurses, audiologists, speech language pathologists, early interventionists, early childhood professionals, and any other professionals involved in the EHDI system of services.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).
