Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/923915

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Title
Newborn screening and earlier intervention with deaf children: issues for the developing world
Author/Creator
Leigh, Gregory R.;  Newall, John P.;  Newall, Anthony T.
Institution
The University of Newcastle. Faculty of Education & Arts, School of Education
Description
The universal screening of newborn children for permanent hearing loss has become a standard health and educational service in many, if not most, developed countries. Developed nations, however, represent the minority of the world's population. Universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS) is far less frequently available in developing countries where hearing loss is often disproportionately prevalent. This chapter considers the issues associated with the development of newborn screening programs in developing countries, where the vast majority of the world's deaf children live. These issues include whether to screen all newborns or to employ a targeted approach of seeking only those children with known risk factors for hearing loss, the articulation of UNHS programs with appropriate support services for children and families, and the availability and quality of subsequent intervention in developing-country contexts. The question of economic affordability and the sustainability of expensive programs of screening in very poor countries is also considered, as are the ethical issues associated with providing (or not providing) access to such programs. It is concluded that successfully implemented UNHS programs stand to provide enormous benefits to deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children and their families in developing countries. It is argued that such benefits will only accrue, however, if programs are well implemented and combined with adequate and effective follow-up.
Relation
The Oxford Handbook of Deaf Studies, Language, and Education, Volume 2 p. 345-359
Relation
Oxford Library of Psychology
Relation
http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/Psychology/Social/?view=usa&ci=9780195390032
Date
2010
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Keyword(s)
developing countries;  health care;  early intervention;  universal newborn hearing screening;  targeted newborn hearing screening
Resource Type
book chapter
Identifier
http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/923915
Identifier
ISBN:9780195390032
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"Newborn screening and earlier intervention with deaf children: issues for the developing world"
 
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