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Jan. 2025
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Streamlining communication
CYSHN is combining the Local Public Health newsletter with the Follow Along Program (FAP) monthly newsletter. Moving forward, we will adopt the FAP newsletter’s monthly schedule. This change streamlines our communication, consolidates information into one place, and ensures all local public health partners have access to valuable early childhood resources. Our goal is to keep everyone informed and equipped with tools that support families of children and youth with special health needs and disabilities.
Copies of previous newsletter issues will continue to be available on our SharePoint by navigating to Newsletters in the left-hand menu.
Local public health conference location announcement
The CYSHN Local Public Health Conference, themed "Children, Families, and Caregivers: A Focus on Mental Health," will take place on May 5 - 6 at St. Cloud River’s Edge Convention Center!
Overnight attendees will stay at the attached Best Western, with skyway access to sessions. Join us in St. Cloud for this engaging event and stay tuned for registration and session details!
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Updated LPH manual for CYSHN condition follow-up
The local public health follow-up manual has been updated and is available on the CYSHN LPH Partner Resources SharePoint. The manual is used by LPH contacts who provide follow-up for children with conditions tracked by CYSHN programs (Birth Defects, EHDI, Heritable Conditions/cCMV). Content in the manual has been reorganized and edited for clarity. However, the expectations of LPH practice are unchanged and reflect current grant agreements.
If you have any questions about the manual, please reach out to Outreach and Prevention Nurse Consultant Dana Janowiak at dana.janowiak@state.mn.us.
Technical support guide
We have a new resource with contact emails, links, and phone numbers for technical assistance. Whether you need help troubleshooting or just have a quick question, the technical support contacts guide connects you to the right support. It is available on SharePoint under “Onboarding and Training” in the left-hand menu.
MEDSS reminders
Case notes and critical updates
When completing follow-up for CYSHN cases, the nursing assessment should be documented in the “Problem Areas” section of the LPH Assessment Wizard. The Additional LPH Case Notes field should be used to document your attempts to contact the family or any other issues. There is no need to duplicate what you have already documented in the “Problem Areas” in the Additional LPH Case Notes field.
The LPH Critical Updates field should only be used to notify MDH of any new demographic information, including address, phone number, parent or guardian information, or child death. You may also use this field to ask for non-urgent technical assistance from MDH. You can find more information on pages 32-33 in the CYSHN MEDSS User Manual General Guide on the CYSHN LPH Partners SharePoint.
Address check requests
If you receive an Address Check request in the LPH follow-up to complete workflow, please be sure to fill out the Result of Address Research field in the Access and Reimbursement Information section. Filling out this field helps avoid delays in reimbursement. You can find more information about this request on pages 38-40 in the CYSHN MEDSS User Manual General Guide on the CYSHN LPH Partners SharePoint.
Workflows
When new cases are assigned to LPH, they end up on one of four workflows. Please be sure to check your workflow queue to see if you have any cases to follow up on. The four workflows are:
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LPH Follow-up to Complete: Events with only one Agency Notified field listed.
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LPH Additional Follow-up to Complete: Events with an acuity change or more than one Agency Notified field listed (e.g. a child moved).
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LPH Second Assessments: Events where the LPH contact determined the family needed a second assessment and indicated they would be contacting the family again.
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LPH Submit Follow-up: Events where the LPH contact entered a date in the Date LPH Completed Case field but have not checked the Submit Event checkbox.
Condition follow-up community of practice – Mar. 6
Save the date for the first condition follow-up community of practice on Thursday, March 6 from 9 - 10:30 a.m. The purpose of these meetings is to provide routine opportunities for LPH nurses who follow up on birth defects, early hearing detection and intervention, heritable conditions, and congenital cytomegalovirus cases to discuss nursing practice topics related to CYSHN. All current CYSHN condition follow-up program contacts will receive an agenda and invitation via email for this optional and virtual event.
Please reach out to health.cyshn@state.mn.us if you would like to invite a colleague who is not on our contact list.
Program updates
Birth Defects Monitoring and Analysis
Birth Defects Awareness Month
Governor Walz proclaimed January as Birth Defects Awareness Month in Minnesota! Following the proclamation, bridges and buildings in Minnesota were lit up to honor all families affected by birth defects and celebrate that Every Journey Matters.
No two people living with birth defects are exactly alike. Everyone’s birth defect journey is unique, shaped by their specific condition, individual strengths, and the support system in place.
The proclamation and lightings are a reminder that with a strong community of support, individuals and families can better navigate their health experiences.
View the proclamation on the birth defects monitoring and analysis webpage.
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- Webinar and podcast for health care providers – Jan. 31
Don't miss this Birth Defects Awareness Month webinar on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) presented by OTIS and MotherToBaby. The webinar is on Friday, Jan. 31 at 11 a.m. and will be presented by Dr. Noemi Spinazzi of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
It is a free webinar, but advanced registration is required.
MotherToBaby has also created a 3-part podcast series about FASD for birth defects awareness month. CEUs are available to those who listen to all three parts. Details are provided in the show notes for each episode.
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Early Hearing Detection and Intervention
Updated web version of parent binder available now!
An updated version of the EHDI parent binder in English is now available on the EHDI Information for Families & Caregivers webpage. Updates were made to better align the web version of the binder with the print binder that is sent to all families in Minnesota once their child is identified as deaf or hard of hearing.
The web version can be used as a guide when talking to families about the resources in the print binder. Hmong, Spanish, and Somali versions are coming soon. Please visit the EHDI Resources for Families webpage for additional resources.
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Follow Along Program
Quarterly meeting recording and materials
Thank you to everyone who attended our quarterly statewide meeting! The recording is available on the SharePoint website along with a separate transcript file and a copy of the PowerPoint slides. The transcript file is available to support accessibility, if needed. If you are not able to access the SharePoint site or are having trouble with any of the files below, please reach out to health.cyshn@state.mn.us.
Upcoming deadlines and meetings
- Data reporting and invoicing – Jan. 31 and Feb. 20
FAP collects a semi-annual data, every 6-months. Your 6-month data report for Jul. 1 - Dec. 31 will be collected via survey, due Friday, Jan. 31.
Once you have submitted your data, your CHB can invoice MDH for the fourth quarter of 2024 (Oct. 1 - Dec. 31). Invoices are due by Thursday, Feb. 20 via survey or emailed to health.cyshn@state.mn.us. If you would like to submit your invoice via survey, you can do so while submitting data at survey linked above or via the separate invoice submission survey. Invoices cannot be paid without the data being reported.
- Implementation open office hour – Feb. 3
The next FAP open office hour will take place on Monday, Feb. 3 from 9 - 10 a.m. These office hours are focused on implementation and problem-solving. They are a voluntary, informal, collaborative session where you can bring your challenges, ideas, and questions to discuss solutions and strategies for implementing the Follow Along Program. Whether you're working on a specific project, trying to implement a new process, or facing roadblocks, "drop in" and we can discuss possible solutions.
Please contact Michele at michele.kvikstad@state.mn.us if you implement FAP and have not received a calendar invite to the office hour.
- Join the community engagement team! – Feb. 24
FAP hosts conversations with families, caregivers, community members, and local and Tribal public health to provide feedback and improve the program.
FAP is seeking new local public health representatives to join this community engagement team from the north and central regions. (SW and SE are already represented, but if you are interested in joining and are from the southern regions, you can still request to join.)
As a regional LPH representative, you would attend, engage, and share perspectives at monthly 2-hour meetings online. You would also participate in activities outside of meetings, such as filling out surveys or providing written input on documents and materials. The next virtual meetings are from 9 -11 a.m. Feb. 24, Mar. 17, Apr. 28, and May 19.
Please contact Michele at michele.kvikstad@state.mn.us if you are interested in joining.
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