Happy New Year! With a new year often comes a renewed sense of energy and focus. The ECHO Program is excited to start 2021 with the hope that the COVID-19 vaccine rollout will soon bring relief to our country after nearly a year in the pandemic. During this past year, our research staff and participants have shown patience, flexibility, and innovation, and they enter 2021 with enthusiasm for meeting the mission of ECHO.

On the cohorts side of ECHO, our researchers contribute data to the ECHO-wide Cohort data platform guided by the Year 5 goals we mentioned in the last ECHO Connector. These data will allow us to publish important information about the origins of child health outcomes that will ultimately help inform programs, policies, and practices.

On the IDeA States Pediatric Clinical Trials Network (ISPCTN) side, the network recently published its first ACT NOW Current Experience manuscript, “Site-Level Variation in the Characteristics and Care of Infants with Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal,” in Pediatrics. Additionally, the iAmHealthy trial continues to progress with families now in the final month of the 6-month intervention period. A full update on this study is included in this edition of the Connector.

Thank you for your continued support of ECHO’s mission to enhance the health of children for generations to come. We look forward to engaging more with you in 2021!