minnesota newborn screening program

Communicating to Parents about Newborn Screening

On this page:
Roles and Responsibilities of Providers
Educational Materials
Screening information for families who do not speak English

Roles and Responsibilities of Providers

Responsibility to Inform

Instructions for hospitals regarding parental newborn screening options. (PDF 17KB/2 pages)

Minnesota Statutes §144.125 Subd. 3 and §144.966 Subd. 3 require birth hospitals and healthcare providers to educate parents about the benefits and risks of newborn screening, as well as the specific benefits and risks associated with choosing to opt-out of any part of newborn screening.

To offer the best care to the infants born in your facility and to inform parents of their rights under the law, the Minnesota Department of Health Newborn Screening Program recommends taking the following steps:

  1. Review the One Simple Test can Make a Difference for Your Child brochure with parents. It is available free from the Newborn Screening Program and can be ordered by calling (800) 664-7772.

  2. Tell parents that their infant’s newborn screening specimen and hearing screening results will be sent to the Minnesota Department of Health. Unless directed otherwise by the parents, the newborn screening program will destroy the remaining blood sample after 71 days and the results will be destroyed after 24 months.

  3. Inform parents that they can decline to have their infant screened. Inform them of associated risks:

    1. Babies can die or become developmentally delayed as a result of not being screened.
    2. Children with the diseases screened for or with hearing loss often appear healthy at birth
    3. By the time symptoms do appear, damage can be irreversible.
    4. An affected child who is not screened may not receive treatment needed to prevent developmental delay, illness, or death.
  4. Tell parents that if they decline to have their infant screened, the choice will be recorded and documented in their infant’s medical record and documented with the Minnesota Department of Health.

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Educational Materials

Prenatal Information Sheets

One simple test can make a difference for your child (PDF: 131KB/1 pages)
(Newborn Screening Information Sheet English)

Un simple análisis puede cambiar el futuro de su recién nacido (PDF: 131KB/1 pages)
(Newborn Screening Information Sheet Spanish)

One simple test can make a difference for your child / hospital information sheet (PDF: 122KB/1 page)
(Newborn Hearing Screening Hospital Information Sheet)

One Simple test can make a difference for your child / primary care information sheet (PDF: 202KB/1 page)
(Newborn Hearing Screening Primary Care Information Sheet)

Information sheets are available for prenatal education of expectant parents about newborn screening. One side of the information sheet is in English and the one side is in Spanish. The free information sheet is available to prenatal care clinics, childbirth educators, hospitals, public health nurses, and others who have contact with expectant parents.

Information sheets for parents are also available addressing newborn hearing screening. One information sheet is ideal for prenatal education of parents-to-be about mandatory newborn screening and the importance of finding hearing loss early. A separate information sheet is available for primary care clinics reminding parents to follow-up on hearing screening results in the nursery.

Brochure for Parents

One Simple Test brochure

The Newborn Screening Program has designed a parent brochure that is available free of charge to new parents, hospitals, medical care providers, childbirth educators, and birth attendants. Please call the Newborn Screening Program at (800) 664-7772 to get copies. All parents should receive a brochure before newborn screening is done.

The parent brochure is designed to answer parents’ questions about newborn screening.

Parent brochure page

Can Your Baby Hear You Say I Love You? brochure

This brochure is designed to be given to parents whose newborn passed the newborn hearing screen. The brochure contains information on hearing screening and includes a brief hearing checklist for parents to monitor their baby's communication development. This brochure is available in several languages.

Passed Newborn Hearing Screening English version (PDF: 65KB/2 pages)
Passed Newborn Hearing Screening Hmong version (PDF: 30KB/2 pages)
Passed Newborn Hearing Screening Somali version (PDF: 31KB/2 pages)
Passed Newborn Hearing Screening Spanish version (PDF: 56KB/2 pages)

Show Your Baby Your Love.

This brochure can be given to parents whose newborn did not pass the newborn hearing screen. The brochure contains information on the importance of follow-up testing for babies who did not pass the hearing screen and includes a section where rescreening appointment information can be written.

Did Not Pass Newborn Hearing Screening English version (PDF: 65KB/2 pages)
Did Not Pass Newborn Hearing Screening Hmong version (PDF: 39KB/2 pages)
Did Not Pass Newborn Hearing Screening Somali version (PDF: 41KB/2 pages)
Did Not Pass Newborn Hearing Screening Spanish version (PDF: 45KB/2 pages)

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Screening information for families who do not speak English

Fact sheets about newborn screening in a variety of languages are found at the following sites:

New England Newborn Screening Program - Brochures
California Department of Public Health
New England Regional Genetics Group

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Updated Monday, 23-Jan-2012 19:31:15 CST