Around this time each year, I find myself reflecting on where the ECHO Program was a year ago, where we have gone, and where we are heading. For all of us, 2020 has looked wildly different from all previous years of our lives, and it has come with many challenges. I feel a sense of pride, however, for the way our ECHO teams have stepped up, adapted, and overcome COVID-19-related barriers to continue our important work to enhance the health of children for generations to come.

During this past year, the ECHO Program team publicly launched our ECHO Discovery Series and the ECHO Connector and mapped out a plan for this 5^th year of the program to ensure we continue down a successful road toward meeting our mission.  Our investigators continue their research, both on the observational and intervention fronts, and there are many research results in the pipeline for publication during this coming year.

As we enter Year 5 of ECHO, our plan outlines goals and objectives to foster a collaborative environment so that our investigators can publish important research that will inform healthcare practices, new health programs in our communities, and health policies. In addition to the goals set forth by the ECHO Components, the NIH ECHO Program Office has created a strategic plan that will help steer the program in the right direction. You may read more about this plan below.

2020 has also seen increased engagement with our stakeholder organizations.  I hope that you are enjoying receiving these updates on the ECHO Program, and we look forward to sharing many more in the New Year. We hope you have a wonderful and safe end of the year, and we will be back with the first ECHO Connector of 2021 in January.

As ECHO Program Director, it is my pleasure to introduce you to the first issue of the ECHO Connector.

The ECHO Connector is a forum to share information, inform you of recent publications and upcoming events, and spark conversation and collaboration. I hope that these emails will serve as a way for ECHO to connect with organizations like yours and individuals across the country who are interested in child health research.

ECHO focuses on five key pediatric outcomes with large public health impact: Pre-, peri-, and postnatal; Upper and lower airway; Obesity; Neurodevelopment; and Positive Health, or well-being.

The program has two major components, the ECHO Cohorts—for observational research, and the ECHO IDeA States Pediatric Clinical Trials Network (ISPCTN)—for interventional research.

In an observational cohort study, researchers investigate what is happening with study participants’ health over time, and why, without intervention. ECHO weaves together information from 72 long-term ongoing maternal-child cohort studies totaling about 50,000 children from racially, socioeconomically, and geographically diverse backgrounds.

In an interventional clinical trial, researchers test how well a new prevention or treatment strategy works. ISPCTN conducts this type of research across 17 sites with rural or underserved children.

Together within this program, these two types of research have the potential to answer big questions about how influences in early human development—even before birth—affect us throughout our lives and across generations. This information can help inform state and/or national policies, public health programs, or clinical care to help kids live healthier lives.

ECHO can also address pressing public health needs—like the ongoing opioid crisis and the current COVID-19 pandemic. We’ve quickly mobilized to look at how the coronavirus affects pregnant women and children. You can read more about our efforts in ECHO’s Response to COVID-19 and Establishing a Standard of Care for Babies Born Dependent on Opioids below.

I believe that ECHO has the right formula of cohorts, clinical trials, and supporting resources to provide evidence to move the needle in child health. I look forward to sharing information about our research and partnering with you.