APHL Newborn Screening Systems Quality Improvement Projects Award Recipients Announced

Newborn screening laboratory scientist at work

The Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) is pleased to announce the recipients of the Newborn Screening Systems Quality Improvement Projects awards. Funded through a cooperative agreement with Genetic Services Branch of the US Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), these awards will provide funding to support continuous quality improvement (CQI) initiatives led by state newborn screening programs.

The Newborn Screening Systems Quality Improvement Projects build on the combined success of previous HRSA Maternal and Child Health Bureau funded cooperative agreements for NewSTEPs, NewSTEPs 360 and the NewSTEPs Timeliness Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Network (CoIIN). However, the Newborn Screening Systems Quality Improvement Projects are unique in that agencies are able to identify specific system challenges within their programs and request the funding necessary to work through their challenges using CQI methods. The ultimate goal is to improve their state or territorial newborn screening program thus improving health outcomes for newborns.

A total of 14 project proposals from 12 agencies were selected to participate in the QI projects, with focus areas including newborn screening timeliness, improvements to long- and short- term follow-up, patient and provider education, health information technology (HIT) and improvements to results reporting. These agencies include:

  • Alaska Department of Health and Social Services
  • Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
  • Georgia Department of Public Health Laboratory
  • Georgia Department of Public Health Laboratory
  • Heluna Health in partnership with the California Department of Health
  • Iowa Department of Public Health
  • Louisiana Office of Public Health Laboratories
  • Minnesota Department of Health
  • New York State Department of Health
  • Puerto Rico Newborn Screening Program
  • Puerto Rico Newborn Screening Program
  • South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control
  • Tennessee Department of Health
  • Virginia Department of General Services/Division of Consolidated Services

In addition to funding support, awardees of the Newborn Screening Systems Quality Improvement Projects participate in a multidisciplinary collaborative network focused on improving newborn screening. They will receive customized coaching and technical assistance on designing and implementing their quality improvement project; support around data and reporting; and opportunities to disseminate their projects to other members of the newborn screening community.

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This program is 100% funded through Cooperative Agreement # UG8MC31893 from the Health Resources and Services Administration. All publications and presentations are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of HRSA.

The Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) works to strengthen laboratory systems serving the public’s health in the US and globally. APHL’s member laboratories protect the public’s health by monitoring and detecting infectious and foodborne diseases, environmental contaminants, terrorist agents, genetic disorders in newborns and other diverse health threats.

 

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