Healthy start: ADHS Lab checks the health of Arizona’s newborns

Every year since 2010, Arizona parents have brought an average of 80,000 newborns into the world! And every year, health professionals at the Arizona State Public Health Laboratory test around 160,000 blood spot specimens to make sure those newborns have the best possible health at the start of their lives.

Through ADHS, Arizona is one of ten states leading the nation in newborn health initiatives by using the Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP), a list of disorders the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recommends states screen for as part of their state universal newborn screening programs.

The goal of the program is to identify newborns with certain congenital disorders that can affect a child’s long-term health or survival as soon as possible and connect infants and their families to early care and treatment.

When the Arizona State Public Health Laboratory was first established in 1993, the Office of Newborn Screening screened Arizona newborns for seven disorders. Today our scientists test for five times that amount, screening newborns for 35 rare but treatable core disorders. The lab also screens for an additional 26 rare but treatable secondary disorders on the RUSP.

Disorders are added to the RUSP based on evidence supporting the potential net benefit of screening, states’ ability to screen for the disorder, and the availability of effective treatments. When a new condition is added to the RUSP, ADHS updates its testing practices and implements screening for the new condition within two years.

Arizona further leads the way in newborn health by being one of 13 states using the more thorough two-screen model. All babies are screened at 36 to 48 hours old and then screened again at five to 10 days old, helping ensure any disorders that are severe, develop later, or appear in milder forms that could be missed during the first screen are detected. Newborns are also screened for hearing and congenital heart defects at the birthing facilities before discharge.

On average, the program identifies 120 newborns with these genetic disorders and 200 newborns with hearing disorders annually. The program also provides assistance to families of affected newborns together with other ADHS programs and external partners.

Visit the Newborn Screening Program to learn even more about our program. You can also listen to our podcast The Parenting Brief- Newborn Screenings: What to Expect, hosted by Jessica Stewart-Gonzales (Program Director for the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program) with Fran Altmaier (Newborn Screening Health Program Administrator), to learn more about what to expect from your baby’s newborn screening

Here are some additional resources new parents might want to explore about newborn screening:

Health Resources & Services Administration: The federal agency provides up-to-date information, materials and resources about newborn screening.
Baby’s First Test: The site provides an education resource center for parents and health professionals.

NewSTEPS: This site provides a national newborn screening resource center designed to provide data, technical assistance and training to newborn screening programs and assist states with quality improvement initiatives.

By Kathryn Wangsness|2023-09-27T11:00:07-07:00September 27th, 2023|Preparedness|Comments Off

About the Author: Kathryn Wangsness

Kathryn Wangsness, MHA, is the Assistant Bureau Chief for the Bureau of State Laboratory Services (ASPHL) at the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS). Kathryn has been part of the ADHS team since 1997 working as a scientist, certification officer, office chief and now bureau chief over the Offices of Chemistry, Laboratory Licensure and Certification, and Support Services and Operations. She earned her Masters of Health Administration from the University of Phoenix and her Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry with an emphasis in Biochemistry from Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona. Kathryn joined ADHS in 1997 as a chemist analyzing water samples for inorganic parameters. In 2001, she accepted a position as a Blood Alcohol consultant, which lasted two years, and concurrently as a Federal/State Laboratory Licensure Surveyor in the Office of Laboratory Services. She is an approved EPA certification officer for inspecting inorganics, organics, and microbiology compliance testing in drinking water laboratories. In 2006, she accepted the position of quality assurance manager. In 2008, Kathryn became the Office Chief for the Office of Laboratory Services. She is an alumnus of the APHL Emerging Leader Program and participates in the Emerging Leader Alumni Network (ELAN). She has been trained in continuous quality improvement strategies such as Lean and Six Sigma. She has assisted the laboratory in becoming ISO/IEC 17025 accredited for food and forensic testing. Kathryn is an active participant in APHL and has served as a member of the Laboratory Systems and Standards Committee from 2021 to present, as a member and as chair the last three years, of the Environmental Laboratory Science Committee from 2009 to 2021, as Chair of the Governmental Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Subcommittee from 2009 to 2016, has participated in numerous workgroups, Co-chaired the Public Health Laboratory Competencies workgroups for surveillance and communication from 2012 to 2014, and chaired the Data Acceptance Workgroup.