Stakeholders’ Perspective for Improved Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Uptake in Odisha, India

Abstract

Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS) is a significant public health initiative as early diagnosis and intervention are critical for children’s cognitive development. In India, priority for UNHS has been provided since 2013; however, there are various operational challenges associated with it. There is a lack of multi-stakeholders perspective on UNHS, which is crucial for improving the service intake. Therefore, this study attempted to understand the perspective of various stakeholders to explore the practices, processes and technologies used in the existing UNHS landscape in Odisha, India. The qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted among various stakeholders including 15 mothers, 5 service providers (audiologists), 10 districts and state-level programme managers. Data were analysed using content analysis approaches. Two major themes emerged were ‘social-shaping of technology for UNHS’ and ‘mothers’ understanding and experience on UNHS’. Employee retention, equipment limitations, facilities maintenance and little knowledge among mothers about hearing screening have been described as major operational challenges. The study revealed that to increase universal coverage ‘screening technology should be socially shaped’. There seems to be a need for ‘portable technology with ease to use and better diagnostic accuracy’ for first-stage screening at various levels of healthcare facilities along with community literacy on UNHS.

An exploratory study of nurses' knowledge, skill, and training requirements for newborn hearing screening in a public-sector program in South India

“…The feasibility assessment of a pilot NHS in South Africa provided useful insights to guide large-scale program implementation [13]. One such attempt was made in Orissa, India, by assessing parents' and audiologists' perspectives on NHS [14], but the present work is the first known attempt in an Indian context to study nurses' perspectives using qualitative methods that provide deeper insights.…”