2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH
3/14/2022 | 12:35 PM - 1:00 PM | COVID-19 effects on the well-being and hearing healthcare of children who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families | Room 9
COVID-19 effects on the well-being and hearing healthcare of children who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families
With quantitative and qualitative methods, our research team assessed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children in Kentucky who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) and their families. Over 130 parents of children who are DHH (ages 0-17 years) completed an online survey at baseline (September – November 2020) and repeated the survey 6-7 months later (April-June 2021). The online surveys assessed parents’ experiences with their children’s hearing healthcare access and use. Other measures included the COVID-19 Exposure and Family Impact Survey (CEFIS) and validated scales assessing parent and child wellbeing, attitudes toward telehealth, and social determinants of health. Next, we conducted in-depth interviews with 30 parents who represented a range of quantitative outcomes from the survey. Finally, we assessed barriers and facilitators to service provision during this public health crisis by interviewing 20 administrators and direct service providers, including audiologists, speech therapists, teachers of the deaf, and early interventionists. This presentation will explore factors associated with better and worse child and family outcomes, and it will describe resources, practices, and policies that were identified to improve services to children who are DHH, in the context of the short- and long-term effects of the pandemic.
- Describe the mixed-methods project design used for this study.
- Describe factors associated with better and worse outcomes for children who are DHH and their families during the COVID pandemic.
- Describe barriers and facilitators to the provision of hearing healthcare services during the COVID pandemic, as described by participants in this study.
Presentation:
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Handouts:
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Transcripts:
CART transcripts are NOT YET available, but will be posted shortly after the conference
Presenters/Authors
Christina Studts
(), University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus , CHRISTINA.STUDTS@CUANSCHUTZ.EDU;
Dr. Studts is an associate professor of pediatrics and implementation scientist in the Adult & Child Consortium for Health Outcomes Research & Delivery Science (ACCORDS) at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Her research focuses on increasing access to evidence-based parenting interventions among understudied and underserved populations, including parents of young children who are deaf or hard of hearing and who use hearing aids or cochlear implants. In addition to leading her own program of community-engaged research, Dr. Studts serves as an implementation scientist on teams studying the adoption and sustained use of evidence-based practices in a variety of topical areas, and she directs and teaches in the Dissemination and Implementation Graduate Certificate Program at the University of Colorado.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exist.
Julie Jacobs
(InPerson), University of Kentucky , julie.jacobs@uky.edu;
Julie Jacobs, MPH, is a research director at the University of Kentucky, where she has worked for the past 8 years with Dr. Christina Studts on grant-funded projects that focus on increasing access to evidence-based interventions to address the needs of underserved populations, particularly for children who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families. Ms. Jacobs earned her Master of Public Health degree at Saint Louis University in 2010, and she started her public health research career over 12 years ago at Washington University in St. Louis.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exist.
Laura Bellnier
(InPerson), University of Kentucky, laura.bellnier@uky.edu;
Laura Bellnier, MPH, is a research associate at the University of Kentucky. Her work in hearing healthcare research began as a graduate assistant while pursuing her Master of Public Health at the University of Kentucky. Ms. Bellnier assists with several grant-funded projects that focus on increasing access to hearing health care and evidence-based interventions to improve health outcomes for children and adults who are deaf or hard of hearing. Prior to joining the University of Kentucky, Ms. Bellnier spent seven years providing educational access and affordable housing services to underserved families in Appalachia and Central Kentucky.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from University of Kentucky.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exist.
Callihan Moraska
(), University of Kentucky, callihan.moraska@uky.edu;
Callihan Moraska is an undergraduate student at the University of Kentucky, expected to graduate in May 2022 with a Bachelor of Public Health degree and a minor in Biology. Ms. Moraska has worked with Dr. Christina Studts’ research team for three semesters, assisting with quantitative and qualitative analyses of a study of the impact of the COVID pandemic on children who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exist.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exist.