Oberkotter Foundation

Hearing loss is the most common newborn developmental emergency. Despite the importance and the urgency of newborn hearing, almost 40% of babies who failed newborn hearing screenings don't get the critical help they need. Oberkotter Foundation and FiveStone partnered together to understand the challenges and create a solution that supports babies who are born DHH (deaf or hard of hearing).

Hearing loss is the most common newborn developmental emergency, yet almost 40% of babies who failed newborn hearing screenings don't get the critical help they need. The first weeks and months of life are a crucial window for brain growth, and hearing is an important part of that development. While most babies receive newborn hearing screenings directly after birth, the subsequent system is difficult for parents to navigate and causes delays in receiving treatments. Whiteboard partnered with Oberkotter Foundation to understand these challenges and create solutions that support babies born deaf or hard of hearing. Through extensive ethnographic research, including interviews and surveys with families and healthcare providers, we developed a human-centered design approach with a coordinated ecosystem of tactics to address each significant barrier families encounter, ultimately guiding them through awareness, information, and logistical challenges for a timely and efficient journey to hearing.