STAR System - Optimum Healthcare Solutions

Drawing on our experience, OHS has developed a comprehensive Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UHNS) program called STAR System ®, which stands for Screening, Tracking And Reporting System. OHS offers this in-hospital “outsourced” UNHS program to hospitals in Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania as an alternative to hospitals using their own internal resources to perform these screens.

When a hospital contracts with OHS they get a complete program which includes: brand new state of the art equipment and all necessary supplies and materials; experienced Maternal-Child Health and Pediatric nurses to perform the screens; educational information and materials for patients; data management and reporting of results to the state; appropriate tracking and follow-up for babies who "refer"; and fully developed policies and procedures for the administration of the program. The best part is that OHS offers this program at little or no cost to the hospital.

There are currently two acceptable methods of screening infants for hearing loss. These are evoked otoacoustic emissions (EOAE) and automated auditory brainstem response (AABR). Both tests are noninvasive, quick and easy to perform. However each test differs in its ability to detect certain types of hearing loss.

OHS uses the Natus Algo 3 or Algo 3i Automated Auditory Brainstem Response (AABR) as our preferred screening test. While it is true that EOAE’s are more common, and can be cheaper to use and quicker to perform, we choose to use a higher standard of testing. The AABR tests the entire hearing pathway, including auditory nerve functioning. Testing is less dependent on interference from fluid and debris in the ears. Most importantly, compared to the EOAE, the AABR results in a significantly smaller number of babies who do not pass. This means fewer babies need to go on for further, more expensive diagnostic evaluations, tests and follow-up. It also results in much less anxiety for parents, who fear the worst. This equipment, coupled with our personnel and detailed program is what makes STAR System so successful.

All screening results are communicated to the parents, hospital staff, the infant’s primary care provider and the state, in a sensitive manner. Our nurses make sure that newborns that do not pass receive appropriate and timely follow-up, the most time consuming part of any UNHS program.

Many states also require that statistics from new born hearing screening programs be reported to central statewide UNHS data banks. OHS has developed a proprietary web-based data management application specially designed for the purpose of tracking UNHS data. It’s called the STAR Track ® . The application was built with cutting-edge MicroSoft ASP.NET technology and is extremely stable and secure, as well as easy to use. This high security database is HIPAA compliant, password protected and accessible only by authorized personnel.

OHS policies and protocols were built from by a former Director of Maternal Child Health from an inpatient nursing perspective and can easily be applied to any Maternity Unit. Our program is supervised by board certified Pediatricians and licensed Audiologists. s

As you can see, OHS is strategically positioned to help hospitals successfully maintain or improve their UNHS programs. When a hospital partners with us they no longer have the costs and staffing burdens associated with running a hearing screening program using internal staff and resources. OHS presents a viable and cost effective alternative for most hospital-run UNHS programs.