Part C NICU Liaison Project

The Part C/NICU Liaison Project with Early Childhood Connections is a state level project that focuses on child identification, referral, service coordination, and Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) development of Part C eligible infants who are hospitalized in one of the nine Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) in the Denver metro area. The Part C/NICU Liaison Project works in collaboration with the local Early Childhood Connections program and an infant’s primary medical team to support families during their infant’s inpatient stay to identify needed supports, access early intervention services and community resources, and ensure a smooth transition from hospital to home. Infants are referred to the Part C/NICU Liaison Project by hospital staff either because they have been diagnosed with a physical or mental condition known to have a high probability of resulting in significant delays in development or because they are demonstrating developmental delays.

1. To serve as the single point of entry for, and provides consultation, technical assistance, and public awareness to hospital personnel in the nine level III NICUs in the Denver metro area to support the early identification and referral of newborns who may be eligible for Part C early intervention services and to connect families immediately to appropriate community resources and supports. The nine level III NICUs in the Denver metro area are: The Children’s Hospital, Denver Health Medical Center, Littleton Adventist Hospital, Lutheran Medical Center, Presbyterian Saint Luke’s Medical Center, Rose Medical Center, Saint Joseph Hospital, Swedish Medical Center, and University Hospital.



2. To serve as a liaison between the referring hospital and the Service Coordinator in the family’s county of residence while the infant is hospitalized. The NICU Liaison works in collaboration with the Service Coordinator to:
• ensure that families understand their rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA)
• explain the eligibility determination process for the infant
• develop an IFSP in partnership with the infant’s primary medical team
• ensure that families know how to access early intervention supports and services
• help families access other community supports and resources as needed


3. To provide technical assistance and consultation to community level Part C personnel as well as staff members of level III NICUs outside of the Denver metro area to ensure a consistent, statewide process for identification and referral into the Part C system



4. To maintain data as part of the Child Count database in order to integrate the collection of data from the NICU Liaison Project into the state’s overall data collection efforts. The NICU Liaison Project also provides data regarding referral patterns, IFSP development, diagnoses, and demographic trends to local Early Childhood Connections programs and NICU staff members on a regular basis.

Funding Source: 
This project is funded by Colorado Division of Developmental Disabilities, Early Childhood Connections, Part C funding.

Contact Person: 
Annie Immele, MSW
Project Director
13121 E. East 17th Ave., C234
Denver, CO 80262
303-315-1012
Annie.Immele@uchsc.edu 

Project Website:
www.earlychildhoodconnections.org (and click on System Partners, Statewide Projects)

Project Staff:
Alyson Hatten, MS, CRC, NICU Liaison
Maria Eugenia Marin, NICU Liaison
Jessica Sampson, MSW, NICU Liaison
Sandra Shaw, Administrative Assistant

JFK Partners

University of Colorado Denver

13121 E. 17^th Ave, C234

Aurora, CO 80045

This site designed and hosted by Electronic Storefronts, Inc