Lab Quality Program Important to Newborn Screening

"Learn about one of the nation’s most successful public health programs for newborn screening – CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health Lab Quality Program.

CDC’s Division of Laboratory Sciences in the National Center for Environmental Health plays an important role in newborn screening by offering the Newborn Screening Quality Assurance Program (NSQAP) to local, state, and international laboratories, and assuring newborn screening test results are as accurate as possible.

Shortly after a baby is born, a health professional takes a few drops of blood from the baby’s heel. The blood sample is sent to a state laboratory to be analyzed for several severe disorders. This process, known as newborn screening, is one of the nation’s most successful public health programs because the early identification of severe disorders has led to timely intervention and life-saving treatments for newborn children. A big part of the success of newborn screening in the laboratory is CDC’s NSQAP. This voluntary, non-regulatory program helps state health departments and their laboratories maintain and enhance the quality of test results.

Joanne Mei leads NSQAP in the Newborn Screening and molecular Biology Branch in CDC’s Division of Laboratory Sciences, National Center for Environmental Health. The program’s role, she says, is simple: “We exist to help newborn screening labs minimize the risk of making errors.”.."
Newborn screening

Newborn Screening is Important for Your Baby

"The nursery is decorated, the car seat is ready, and you can't wait to bring your new baby home. But before your newborn comes home, he or she will need some important screening done at the hospital. This screening is called newborn screening and includes a blood test, hearing screening, and, in many hospitals, screening for critical congenital heart defects. Newborn screening is important because even if your baby looks healthy, some medical conditions can't be seen just by looking. If your baby was not born in a hospital or was not screened before leaving the hospital, take him or her to the doctor's office or hospital to be screened as soon as possible..."
Newborn screening