MCH Student:

Marijke van Roojen

Date of Defense:

January 9, 2015

Abstract:

Missed critical congenital heart defects in the  newborn are responsible for three percent of all  infant deaths each year in the United States. Routine pulse oximetry screening of the newborn  can detect low oxygen saturations in the apparently normal newborn prior to hospital discharge,  and can help to decrease the incidence of death due to missed heart disease. Wisconsin SHINE  ( Screening  Hearts in  NEwborns) is a three – year pilot program implementing statewide pulse oximetry screening for critical congenital heart defects. In addition to screening in the  hospital  setting, Wisconsin is the only state in the U.S. that has fully implemented a screening protocol  for babies born in the out – of – hospital setting, including screening within Amish and Old Order  Mennonite populations in the state. Extending newborn screening practices into this community  is challenging. The purpose of this evaluation is to identify facilitative factors and barriers to  implementing pulse oximetry screening in the out – of – hospital birth population, and specifically  in Old Order Mennonite and Amish communities.