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ABSTRACT INFORMATION
Title: 'Baby Steps: Using a Regionally Customized Roadmap to Empower Families along the Journey of Screening through Early Intervention'
Track: 1-EHDI Program Enhancement
Audience: Primary Audience: State Health Department
Secondary Audience: Early Intervention Provider
Tertiary Audeince:
Keyword(s): Parent Support, Parent/Professional Collaboration
Learning Objectives: 1. Develop a customized Roadmap for Families 2. Identify key stakeholders to participate in a regionalized EHDI Team

Abstract:

Under the guidance of the state EHDI program and the Colorado chapter of Hands & Voices (a parent-driven support group for families of children who are deaf and hard of hearing), a Roadmap for Families is being customized for each birthing hospital in Colorado to help ensure that families receive timely and appropriate follow-up. Each Roadmap was developed by parents and professionals involved in the Early Hearing Detection and Intervention system in each local community. The Roadmaps refer families and providers to audiologists who have the expertise and equipment to assess infants and also provides regional contacts for Hands & Voices, early interventionists, a regional Audiology consultant working for the state EHDI program, and the Local Healthcare Program for Children with Special Needs team leader. The goal of the Roadmap is to: 1. Arm families with the knowledge of “next steps” following a referral on the hearing screen and/or diagnosis of hearing loss; 2. Decrease the referral time ensuring adherence to the 1-3-6 EHDI program goals; 3. Decrease the use of sedation for infants needing a dialogistic work-up; 4. Decrease loss-to-follow up rates. The presenters will show some customized regional Roadmaps and also share experiences from their travels across the state as they joined professionals and parents at local EHDI meetings. The interactive website tool will also be shared.
Presentation(s): Not Available
Handouts: Not Available
SPEAKER INFORMATION
PRESENTER(S):
Janet DesGeorges - Hands & Voices
     Credentials: n/a
      Janet DesGeorges lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband Joe and is mom to three daughters, including Sara, who is hard of hearing. She is the Executive Director of Colorado Families for Hands & Voices, and is a co-founder and part of the national staff at Hands & Voices, Inc. as the Outreach Director. Janet has presented to groups nationwide and internationally about the experiences of families as they journey through life with a child with deafness or hearing loss. Ms. DesGeorges is the co-author of a chapter on Educational Law for Deaf/hh students, a contributing author to the NCHAM e-book, and many other publications. She currently serves on the national faculty for the NICHQ EHDI Learning Collaborative, as well as the Marion Downs Center Advisory, and co-chairs the CDC Parent-to-Parent Committee.
Denise Davis-Pedrie - Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind
     Credentials: M.A. CCC-Sp. Speech/Language/Hearing Pathologist
     Other Affiliations: Colorado EDHI Regional Team member
      Denise Davis-Pedrie is a speech-language pathologist and teacher of the deaf with a specialist certification in Infant/Toddler Special Education. She is a Colorado Hearing Resource Coordinator with the Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind, supporting families with newly identified children, birth to three years of age. Additionally, Denise has more than 20 years of experience as a preschool teacher for children with hearing loss in an inclusive classroom. Denise is a member of the Board of Directors for Colorado Families for Hands and Voices.
 
AUTHOR(S):
Janet DesGeorges - Hands & Voices
     Credentials: n/a
      BIO: Janet DesGeorges lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband Joe and is mom to three daughters, including Sara, who is hard of hearing. She is the Executive Director of Colorado Families for Hands & Voices, and is a co-founder and part of the national staff at Hands & Voices, Inc. as the Outreach Director. Janet has presented to groups nationwide and internationally about the experiences of families as they journey through life with a child with deafness or hearing loss. Ms. DesGeorges is the co-author of a chapter on Educational Law for Deaf/hh students, a contributing author to the NCHAM e-book, and many other publications. She currently serves on the national faculty for the NICHQ EHDI Learning Collaborative, as well as the Marion Downs Center Advisory, and co-chairs the CDC Parent-to-Parent Committee.
Emily Fields - Colorado Dept of Public Health & Environment
     Credentials: MS, CGC
      BIO: Emily monitors state hearing screening outcomes and provides technical assistance for the EHDI program in Colorado. She maintains the EHDI CHIRP database with reports submitted by hospitals, midwives, audiologists and early interventionists. Emily also has a degree in genetic counseling and is taking a lead role in maintaining a genetics component in the Health Care Program for Children with Special Needs Unit, where she works at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.