Primary Care - Best Practice Guidelines

• Ensure all infants receive an initial hearing screening, and rescreen if appropriate, before 1 month of age.
• Refer a newborn that does not pass the outpatient hearing screening to a pediatric audiologist for a diagnostic evaluation before 3 months of age.
• Stress the importance of timely follow up to families.
• Monitor infants needing follow-up testing to ensure timely completion.
• Update the Michigan EHDI Program on the infant’s hearing status.
• Refer a baby diagnosed with hearing loss to appropriate medical specialists (ENT, Geneticist, etc.)
• Facilitate the infant’s receipt of early intervention services before 6 months of age.
• Identify risk factors associated with late onset changes in hearing thresholds.
• Monitor hearing status throughout childhood.

American Academy of Pediatrics Recommendations

This report covers hearing assessment beyond the newborn period, reviews risk factors for hearing level change, and provides guidance for providers of pediatric primary care on the assessment and care of children who are D/HH.

Hearing Assessment in Infants, Children, and Adolescents: Recommendations Beyond Neonatal Screening

Joint Committee on Infant Hearing Position Statement

This current 2019 document builds on prior Joint Committee on Infant Hearing (JCIH) publications, updating best practices through literature reviews and expert consensus opinion on screening; identification; and audiological, medical, and educational management of infants and young children and their families.

JCIH 2019 Position Statement