2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH
Implementing a Family Education Program for Lost to Intervention: Undergraduate Training and Reflections
In 2019, 61,475 newborns referred for further testing on their initial hearing screening. Of this population, 5,934 were identified with hearing thresholds outside of the typical range. Despite the federal mandate to provide support, 34.5% of identified children did not receive early intervention services (lost to intervention) and may be at risk for decreased language exposure and experience.
The most common known reason for children not to enroll in intervention services is “parents declined”. Parents serve as key stakeholders in accessing services. This presentation is written from the perspective of a student implementer, reflecting on the experience of training and facilitating a family education program on accessing early intervention services. This program focuses on providing families whose children have been identified as D/deaf or Hard or Hearing with support by collaboratively developing actionable steps towards enrollment.
The implementer and participants engaged in hands-on activities working on a dedicated webpage covering key content in early intervention access. This student facilitator was chosen based on prior experience within the Deaf community, university studies concentrated in Speech Language Hearing Sciences, as well as work in the education system with students identified as D/deaf and hard of hearing. With this broad background, this implementer represents the skills of a community health educator with ties to the community but no formal degree or certification in the topic.
Student insights in this poster will include the facilitator’s growth in comfort level with audiological information, flexibility in manipulating information to present to families, and the furthering of understanding in the use of counseling in audiology. All of these have direct links to future clinical work. Reflections from the student implementer provide a window into how to develop meaningful collaboration in research and the engagement of undergraduates in qualitative inquiry within Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences.
- Define the training process for the student implementer to ensure the implementation of the family education program with fidelity.
- Identify the educational benefits and opportunities for undergraduate students through training and facilitation in a research environment.
- Discuss how the unique past experiences shaped the facilitator into the ideal candidate for this type of work.
Poster:
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Presenter: Emily LaSpada
Emily LaSpada is a senior at the University of Connecticut with studies concentrated in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences. Experience working through both the West Hartford and Mansfield Public school systems led a strong educational background. Emily has a passion for working with individuals that are D/deaf and Hard of Hearing stemming from fluency in ASL and a history with the American School for the Deaf. Recent experience in the UConn Speech Processing and Language Development and Aural Rehabilitation Labs, and work as a Newborn Hearing Screener, have shaped the goal of working as a Pediatric Audiologist with research work.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
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Torri Ann Woodruff, Ph.D. is the LEND coordinator for the UConn UCEDD and CT LEND. Passionate about bolstering the voices of stakeholders, Torri Ann implements qualitative methods to highlight the power and value of individual voices in making change. Torri Ann is interested in the intersection of public health, early intervention, and family support. She is currently preparing her dissertation looking at the use of family education to support early intervention enrollment.
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• Receives Salary for Employment,Teaching and speaking from University of Connecticut.
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Kathleen M Cienkowski, Ph.D. CCC/A is an Associate Professor and Department Head of SLHS at the University of Connecticut. Dr. Cienkowski studies the benefits of AR among patients with acquired hearing loss and their families. Her work has been funded by National Institutes of Health and the Veterans Administration. She is the Past-President of the Academy of Rehabilitative Audiology, Past-Coordinator for the American Speech, Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) Special Interest Group 7: Aural Rehabilitation and Its Instrumentation. She currently serves a audiology discipline coordinator for the UCONN LEND and co-investigator for the UCONN Pediatric LEND Supplement grant.
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