Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #117619

Deneen Long-White, Eleanor Padgett, MSW, and Robin Diggs, MPH. Maternal and Family Health Administration, District of Columbia Department of Health, 825 North Capitol Street NE 3rd floor Room 3181, Washington, DC 20002, 202-442-9343, dlong-white@dchealth.com

Over the past ten years, birth defects has climbed to be the second leading cause of death among District of Columbia infants. In an effort to address this issue, the Department of Health (DOH) began the District of Columbia Birth Defects Prevention and Surveillance Program (DCBDPS). To ensure coordinated comprehensive activities, one key feature was required - the integration of this new surveillance system with current MCH surveillance and program activities. In response, DOH looked to an existing Title V program, the Hospital Discharge Planner Program, and the integrated Universal Newborn Infant Tracking System (UNITS) to fill these requirements. Integration occurs at multiple levels from data collection, database linkage, program planning and implementation, to referral and follow-up services. Key examples of integration include, at the data collection level, Discharge Planners funded through the Title V program and placed in hospitals are responsible for identifying infants with birth defects, collecting specific data, and beginning the process of linking the families to the State Title V Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN) Program. The CSHCN Program is responsible for ensuring linkage of the family to needed services. All information is housed in UNITS, an integrated database, which includes results of newborn hearing and metabolic screens, birth defects surveillance, lead screening, care coordination and Discharge Planner data reports. The DCBDPS is an excellent example integrating surveillance of a smaller population into larger MCH surveillance. In addition, it serves as a model for utilizing public/private partnerships to effectively and efficiently conduct surveillance and monitoring.

Learning Objectives: