Cross-Systems Collaboration in a Community Developmental Screening Program: A Best Practices Model

An innovative developmental screening initiative launched over 20 years ago in Hillsborough County, FL, has evolved into a highly successful community-wide program designated by the Florida Department of Education as a “Best Practice.” Our presentation will provide a systems perspective on the role of interagency collaboration in developing and implementing a program that screens more than 1,500 young children each year. We will focus on a major component of the program: monthly screening events scheduled at sites throughout the county. More than 50 professionals from a broad range of agencies (e.g., health, social services, education) come together one day each month to screen children for delays or problems with vision, hearing, speech and language skills, motor development, learning, and social-emotional development. Over the course of a year, up to 300 professionals representing 30 agencies are likely to participate in at least one monthly screening. Community partners sign Memoranda of Agreement to provide screeners for the 10 screening stations needed to execute the monthly events. Along with a small staff funded by our local Children's Services Council , these agency volunteers provide free comprehensive screening and service referral for any child from birth to age 5 who lives Hillsborough County. An overview of the screening process will describe how children access the program; selection of event locations; how stations are organized; instruments utilized; volunteer competencies, training, and scheduling; evaluation; and outcomes. Finally, we will discuss program challenges, future direction, and potential for replication in other communities.