{"id":6253,"date":"2022-09-20T10:39:32","date_gmt":"2022-09-20T14:39:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/columbusspeech.org\/?p=6253"},"modified":"2022-11-30T12:29:15","modified_gmt":"2022-11-30T17:29:15","slug":"columbus-speech-hearing-receives-nearly-one-million-dollar-grant-to-support-speech-hearing-early-identification-and-intervention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/columbusspeech.org\/columbus-speech-hearing-receives-nearly-one-million-dollar-grant-to-support-speech-hearing-early-identification-and-intervention\/","title":{"rendered":"Columbus Speech & Hearing Receives Nearly One Million Dollar Grant to Support Speech, Hearing Early Identification and Intervention"},"content":{"rendered":"
Funding will help reach and provide services to Columbus communities that are medically underserved<\/em><\/strong><\/p> COLUMBUS, OH \u2013 <\/strong>Columbus Speech & Hearing (CSH), Columbus\u2019 premier speech and hearing nonprofit, today announced that it has received a $975,000 grant from Ohio\u2019s Medicaid managed care plans: Anthem, Buckeye, CareSource, Molina and UnitedHealthcare. These funds will go toward expanding the nonprofit\u2019s Early Identification and Intervention program, providing follow-up evaluations, referrals, and speech-language therapy and audiology services to additional children in the central Ohio community. Through CSH\u2019s Early Identification and Intervention program, thousands of preschool-aged children living in the greater Columbus area have received speech-language and hearing screenings to identify communication challenges early in their lives. In collaboration with Columbus Early Learning Centers (CELC) and local YMCAs, CSH will use this grant funding to expand upon these efforts through the following initiatives:<\/p> Importance of Early Intervention<\/em><\/p> In the United States, one in 10 children experiences a communication delay or disorder related to speech sounds, receptive language, expressive language, stuttering, voice, literacy, or social interaction skills. Despite this, speech, language and hearing issues often go unnoticed when it comes to children\u2019s health.<\/p> Although treatment at any age is worthwhile, earlier intervention is almost always most effective. A recent American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) study<\/a> revealed that 63% of preschoolers with communication disorders who received treatment (up to 10 hours) showed improvement in articulation and intelligibility. At 40+ hours of treatment, 90% of children showed improvement. Columbus Speech and Hearing Screening Results<\/em> \u201cRepresenting Ohio\u2019s managed care plans, the Ohio Association of Health Plans (OAHP) is proud to support Gov. DeWine\u2019s commitment to healthy families through this grant to CSH.\u00a0 We believe these funds and the early intervention services they support will be truly life changing for the children involved in this program,\u201d added Kelly O\u2019Reilly, President and CEO of OAHP. # # #<\/p> About Columbus Speech & Hearing:<\/strong><\/p> For nearly 100 years, Columbus Speech & Hearing has been the leading nonprofit serving the communication needs of central Ohio. By remaining focused on its mission to help all people improve communication and independence, CSH raises awareness of speech and hearing challenges throughout the Columbus community and surrounding areas. CSH has offices in Clintonville, Dublin and Westerville. For more information, visit ColumbusSpeech.org or connect with us on Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>
\u201cWe are absolutely thrilled to receive this funding and are grateful to Ohio\u2019s Medicaid Managed Care Plans for recognizing the need in our community,\u201d says Davy Weaver, director of clinical services at CSH. \u201cWith it, we\u2019ll be able to provide services to those who need it most, especially in low-income neighborhoods, to help curb the growing problem we are seeing with speech and hearing challenges.\u201d<\/p>
\u201cThis funding will help us increase our targeted in-reach programs\u2019 capabilities, which we are incredibly thankful for as they are an invaluable resource to the children we serve,\u201d said James O. Dye, president and CEO of CSH. \u201cWe will be able to further our efforts to ensure that any child with a communications disorder or delay can be identified and have access to affordable, high-quality intervention services.\u201d<\/p>
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In 2021, speech and hearing screenings conducted by CSH in 12 central Ohio neighborhoods found that 52% of children ages three to five failed their speech-language screenings, and 40% failed their hearing tests. This is an alarmingly high increase from the findings of the same screenings in 2019, where these neighborhoods showed a 27% failure rate for speech-language evaluations and a 21% failure rate for hearing evaluations. Seeking intervention early can help reduce the need for school-based services later on, save time and money with fewer treatment sessions and out-of-pocket expenses, and better prepare children for kindergarten.<\/p>
For more information about CSH or to schedule an appointment at one of our locations, visit ColumbusSpeech.org<\/a>.<\/p>