Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI)
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Early Hearing Detection and Intervention
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How to build your provider care team
When a child is identified as deaf and hard of hearing, there are many doctors and specialty care providers they will see. Their primary care provider will help coordinate care among the primary care team, specialists, and community partners to ensure patient-centered whole person care and improve total health and well-being.
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Make a referral to get connected with free early intervention supports through your local school district.
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All children identified as deaf and hard of hearing should be offered specialty evaluations by an audiologist, ENT doctor, ophthalmologist, and geneticist, and referred to educational professionals through Help Me Grow, or Early Head Start. Children might also be referred to a speech-language pathologist, or local public health nurse.
An audiologist is a licensed medical professional who evaluates, diagnoses, treats, and manages hearing loss and balance disorders. Audiologists use specialized techniques to evaluate hearing in infants and children and recommend appropriate hearing devices, when chosen. Families might work with audiologists both at their clinic or at their school.
Otolaryngologists perform a full medical diagnostic evaluation of the ears, head and neck and related structures. They provide appropriate medical and surgical management and medical clearance for hearing devices, when chosen. They should participate in the long-term monitoring of the child's hearing in partnership with the primary care team.
Children who are deaf and hard of hearing often rely on their vision. It is important to know how your child can see and take steps to protect your child's eyesight when possible. An ophthalmologist is an eye specialist that evaluates your child’s eyesight and checks for associated vision disorders (for example: Usher syndrome, cataracts, or other conditions).
Geneticists, along with genetic counselors, provide evaluation and counseling to provide information to families about etiology (cause) of hearing loss, prognosis for progressive (worsening) hearing loss, as well as associated medical conditions that might need further evaluation (for example: vision, heart, kidney, other).
- Find a Genetic Counselor
- A Parent's Guide to Genetics and Hearing Loss (PDF) (English) (Español)
- Questions You May Want to Ask Your Child's Genetics Team (PDF)
Refer a Child Through Help Me Grow
Children who are deaf or hard of hearing may be eligible to receive free early intervention services through their local public school district. Once connected through Help Me Grow, the local school district will send a teacher or provider who specializes in working with children who have hearing differences. The provider will partner with the family to make sure their child's educational needs are met and will work around their schedule. Early Intervention is so important that the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Minnesota Department of Health recommend connecting all children who are deaf and hard of hearing to Early Intervention. Healthcare providers often make this referral for families, or families can self-refer.Help Me Grow has many resources for parents and caregivers about the development of infants, toddlers, and young children. This includes information and videos on skills to watch for, caregiver strategies that can help support development, family stories, and information about how to get help when there are questions or worries about a child's development.
- Find an Early Head Start Program Near You
Early Head Start programs promote school readiness by enhancing the social and cognitive development of children from low-income families by extending health education, nutrition, social, and other services to family members.
If your child has a hearing loss, you might choose to work with a speech-language pathologist (SLP). The SLP, sometimes called a speech therapist, will help your family decide the best therapy approach for your child.
- Find a Local Health Department or Community Health Board
Local Public Health Departments assist with finding community services that support children with special health needs including those who are deaf and hard of hearing. EHDI Key Contacts are nurses located at local health departments throughout the state who will assist families in facilitating screening, rescreening, or diagnostic appointments. EHDI Key Contacts can also answer questions related to financial resources available to families.
Resources and providers on this list should not be considered an endorsement of any kind from MDH. MDH does not recommend one provider over another. Each family has different needs, and it is our goal to provide as many options as possible.