1. Child Find: Project SEEK
OSEP National Early Childhood Conference
February 2005
Beppie J. Shapiro, Ph.D.
Center for Disability Studies, UCEDD
University of Hawai‘i

2. How can you find out whether all (ok, almost all) eligible children are referred to Part C?
* Compare Parts C and B Section 619 Child Count data for your state
Compare lists of children served in SPED early grades to lists from same birth cohorts served thru Part C.

3. Comparing lists of children served in SPED early grades to lists from same birth cohorts served thru Part C.
Support of Part B Coordinator
Geographically comparable lists from C & B
MOA? FERPA? IRBs?
Which kids will you study?
Birth cohorts
Disability/
Service profiles

4. Methods Disability/Service: SPED: 2 + services or
condition identifiable before age 3
- Part C:
biological risk
develop. delay
Compared lists
Interviewed (phone) parents of most children served in Part B but not C
Removed “record errors” and children born out of state from study

5. Hawai‘i’s Example
Comparison of Part B and Part C enrolled from same birth cohorts
- Over 25% of children born with significant special needs were “missed”.
Good Child Count data comparison
Serving 7.7% of birth cohort in 2003

6. Are professionals who see babies aware of Part C eligibility and cost to families?
What professionals encounter babies?
Design and administer surveys
Analyze results
Hawai‘i results
5 types of professionals from MDs to home visitors
Over half of most groups did not know eligibility or cost to families

8. Do Part C Programs regularly communicate with professionals who referred children to Part C?
2002 AAP Survey of Pediatricians:
53% not notified when referral received
30% don’t get evaluation results
47% don’t hear reasons for disposition
* 61% don’t hear if program can’t contact family
49% don’t get IFSP or progress reports
54% don’t hear when family is discharged

10. Hawai`i strategies evaluated
Implemented in two sets of 3 communities: intervention, pre-post comparison, post-only comparison
Counts of annual referrals 3 years before implementation and one year after.

11. Results: Referred

12. And a final question: How will your system handle increased referrals?
Intake
Evaluations
Services

13. Contact: Beppie Shapiro beppie@hawaii.edu ph. 808.973.9644