Hearing and vision screening program for school-aged children

Abstract

Background Hearing and vision screening programs for school-aged children are common, yet little is known about their impact. Objective To evaluate Michigan's screening program, in which local health department (LHD) staff screen school-aged children using standardized protocols. Methods This project was completed in three phases: interviews with officials and screening technicians from ten LHDs, audit of LHD records regarding outcomes of screening during the 2000–2001 school year, and telephone interviews with randomly selected parents of children with an abnormal screen. Results Variations in LHD program implementation pertained to methods for tracking outcomes, screening of older children, parental notification of screening results, and availability of follow-up hearing clinics. According to LHD records, documentation of follow-up examination after an abnormal screen was low (hearing 27%, vision 25%). In contrast, most parents reported follow-up (74% hearing, 76% vision), and many reported that this resulted in treatment (50% hearing, 74% vision). In logistic regression modeling, the odds of follow-up after hearing or vision screening according to parents was not associated with income, health insurance status, or race/ethnicity. For hearing screening, the odds of follow-up decreased with school grade ( p <0.001); however, the proportion who received treatment did not vary by grade. For vision screening, follow-up did not vary by grade, but the proportion who received treatment increased with grade ( p =0.05). Conclusions According to parent reports, most children had follow-up after an abnormal screen, and the majority of these children received treatment. Screening school-aged children for sensory impairment appears to be an important public health function.