If you recall, here at PatientWorthy, we’ve talked a lot about “newborn screening.” In case you missed it:
What Every New Mom Should Know About Tyrosinemia
What Every Pregnant Woman Should Know About Newborn Testing
This Discovery Will Change the Way You Look at Newborns Forever
There. Now that you’re all caught up, you should be familiar with the mandatory nature of testing babies for abnormalities immediately following birth. Good for you!
That will come in handy, because ironically, not all doctors know–which means it’s up to YOU to inform them.
Well, I’m all for appearing smarter than my fellow Earth inhabitants; in fact, I actively look for opportunities to do a little “enlightening,” as I like it call it. And because I’m just so generous (hate me yet?), I want to pass on a few resources that have helped keep me up-to-date on newborn testing:
1. An Action (ACT) sheet, specifically in the context of tyrosinemia type 1. This simple little tool keeps a record of the appropriate actions doctors should take after a newborn has tested positive for a specific disease.
2. An algorithm essentially does the same thing as the ACT sheet, but it’s worth checking out.
3. This one is my favorite. Baby’s First Test is a center in the United States dedicated to educating doctors and families on newborn screening. I encourage you to the visit the site. It’s extremely informative. These are the sort of programs our government should be funding, don’t you think?
4. The National Newborn Screening and Global Resource Center (NNSGRC) is a mouthful to say and acts as the “Constitution” of newborn screening, at least in my humble opinion. It’s a fabulous resource for learning about the basics of newborn screening and spreading awareness to families, doctors, and government officials across the nation!
If you haven’t simply skimmed this article and actually taken some time to explore the links provided, you should now be well-versed in the concept of newborn screening. Congratulations!
Next step? Spread the word; you could be saving the lives of babies everywhere!
