Health Care Providers

Health care providers play a vital role in the success of newborn screening in Ontario. 

This section of our website is designed to provide information and resources to the two main groups of health care providers that work with Newborn Screening Ontario (NSO) to ensure that all babies are offered timely screening and follow-up. 

These health care providers typically work at: 

Submitting institutions & practices 

We call the hospitals, midwifery practices, birthing centres, and clinics we receive samples from newborn screening "submitters." 

Health care providers who work at these places have the following responsibilities in newborn screening: 

• Parent education 
• Specimen collection, shipping, and tracking 
• Prompt follow-up in the event a sample is unsatisfactory or a screen is missed 

Please visit the Submitter Hub for more information on your role in the newborn screening process, as well as educational content and resources for health care providers.

Regional treatment centres 

We refer babies who screen positive for any of the diseases tested to specialized follow-up centres in the province called "regional treatment centres."

Health care providers at these centres are responsible for: 

• Confirmatory testing of babies who screen positive 
• Treatment and management of true positive cases 
• Providing us with follow-up outcome information 
• Education of local healthcare providers 

To understand the relationship between these health care providers in the overall system of screening in Ontario, please visit our Screening System page. 

If you are a health care provider and have difficulty finding the information you are looking for, please don't hesitate to contact us. 

Visiting scholar opportunities for laboratory professionals: 

The NSO laboratory is offering an opportunity to one interested laboratory professional to be a visiting scholar. One position is available yearly. The training will take place over a 5-week period between September and December of every year. The rotation will include discussion meetings with selected subject-matter experts and observation of the workflows in the Biochemistry and Molecular laboratories.   

If you are interested in this opportunity, please review this document for more information, which includes details about the position and and how to submit your application. 

You can submit your application by completing this form. Ensure all required documents outlined in the link above are prepared prior to submission.