Helen Tattersall

Universal newborn hearing screening: parental reflections on very early audiological management.

Objective: This article seeks to understand very early audiological management from a parental perspective, after the early identification of their childs hearing loss through universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS). Design: Data are taken from the national evaluation of the introduction of UNHS in England. Forty-five parents and caregivers participated in a qualitative, narrative study within which they identified key challenges generated by the audiological management of very young babies with hearing loss at home. Results: Concern centered on the virtual timetable constructed by parents after screening, the practical daily management issues and the need to establish infant rather than a child focus in audiological practice. In addition, specific challenges relating to moderate hearing loss were identified. Conclusions: Results are of particular relevance to pediatric audiologists, teachers of the deaf* and those offering early intervention services.

To What Extent Do the Characteristics of the Object of Evaluation Influence the Choice of Epistemological Framework? The Case of Universal Newborn Hearing Screening

In this article, the authors explore the role that characteristics and circumstances attendant on the object of an evaluation might play in the choice of epistemological framework underpinning research design. They consider examples from the consumer-focused evaluation of the introduction of universal newborn hearing screening in England. In particular, they look at how screen-and program-specific issues exerted influence at the levels of epistemology and method, arguing that these choices are not simply a product of values and questions that underpinned one kind of approach to knowledge production in comparison with another.

The Impact of Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Education Perceiving the Role of Social Services

This article presents results from qualitative interviews with 27 education services working as the lead agency with deaf children and families in sites where the universal newborn hearing screening programme (NHSP) is being piloted in England. This segment of data focuses specifically on how the social work role and practice is perceived by teachers of the deaf. It demonstrates the difficulties encountered in multi-agency working in the absence of specialist deaf child social workers: the perceived impact of deaf child referrals not satisfactorily fitting within any consistent organizational structure within social services; the poor liaison between education and social services over newly identified deaf children; the effects of parental information based on a limited understanding of the social work role and duties. The findings are set within current government initiatives to improve multi-agency working with disabled children and deaf children under three