2022 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Virtual Conference

March 13 - 15, 2022

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4/15/2014  |   9:40 AM - 10:10 AM   |  Improving Loss to Follow-Up Rates Among Iowa Babies: Strategies for Success   |  Orlando   |  1

Improving Loss to Follow-Up Rates Among Iowa Babies: Strategies for Success

In an effort to improve lost to follow up rates in Iowa, EHDI program staff have implemented successful strategies to ensure infants are screened, diagnosed and enrolled in early intervention services in a timely manner. The presentation will highlight the various strategies used throughout each phase of follow up and discuss the progress made towards decreasing lost to follow up/documentation rates and in meeting the needs of Iowa children, families and providers over the last three years. The presentation will provide participants with information on how program staff identified issues that contributed to loss to follow up/documentation numbers and then developed strategies to address the issues using a collaborative approach. Additionally, EHDI staff will discuss the importance of completing quality assurance tasks within the EHDI database to ensure timely collection and analysis of high quality screening and follow up data. EHDI staff will share how the data collected has been used to conduct ongoing evaluation and used with quality improvement activities, which has further increased the effectiveness of the Iowa EHDI program as a whole. The presentation will include program statistics, Iowa’s successes and challenges and plans for the future. We anticipate that this information will be helpful to other states that continue to struggle with improving their lost to follow up/documentation rates.

  • Participants will be able to identify several tests of change or strategies used to reduce lost to follow up/documentation percentages in Iowa
  • Participants will be able to describe how data can be used to evaluate a quality improvement strategy
  • Participants will be able to identify quality assurance activities Iowa EHDI uses in their daily activities to ensure complete and accurate data.

Presentation:
This presentation has not yet been uploaded.

Handouts:
Handout is not Available

Transcripts:
CART transcripts are NOT YET available, but will be posted shortly after the conference


Presenters/Authors

Tammy O'Hollearn (Primary Presenter,Author,POC), Iowa Department of Public Health, tammy.ohollearn@idph.iowa.gov;
Tammy O'Hollearn has been the EHDI Director for Iowa for the last 15 years. She has worked at the Iowa Department of Public Health since 2001. Ms. O’Hollearn provides administrative oversight, budget management, oversees surveillance of the newborn hearing screening and follow-up data base, as well facilitates the day-to-day management of activities to meet program goals. Ms. O’Hollearn works with many stakeholders in the community that assists Iowa EHDI in meeting program goals and strengthen the system of care for Deaf or hard-of-hearing infants. She directs data design, collection, program analyses and evaluation of the EHDI SOC. She serves on many state and national committees and facilitates the Iowa EHDI Advisory Committee. Tammy received a Link Associates Dorothy Schwartz Award in 1993 and ISHA Outstanding Service Award in 2009 and in 2016, the Iowa EHDI program received the EHDI Website of the Year Award.


ASHA DISCLOSURE:

Financial -

Nonfinancial -

Esha Phatak (Co-Presenter,Author), University of Illinois at Chicago, Division of Specialized Care for Children, ephatak@uic.edu;
Esha Phatak graduated with a Master of Public Health degree in 2011. Ms. Phatak currently works with the Illinois's Title V- Children with Special Health Care Needs program that is housed within the University of Illinois at Chicago- Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC). Ms. Phatak has been the HRSA EHDI Coordinator since May 2015 and works closely with the Illinois Department of Public Health in providing oversight for the statewide EHDI program components including reviewing and assessing the screening, diagnosis, and intervention procedures. Additional responsibilities include: formulating standard operating procedures for EHDI program activities; assessing program data and assisting in writing grants and required reporting documents and; participating in statewide interagency conferences and outreach activities to improve systems of care for children with special health care needs and their families. Prior to her work at the DSCC, Ms. Phatak worked for the Iowa DPH EHDI from 2010-2015.


ASHA DISCLOSURE:

Financial -

Nonfinancial -