Graduate Student Internship Program

2008 Catalog of Internship Opportunities

This internship has been filled.

Needs Assessment Enhancement for Ohio’s CSHCN

Program: Division of Family and Community Health Services
Department of Health, Public Health Division, Family Health Bureau, Maternal and Ohio Department of Health, Columbus, OH
Skill Area: Needs Assessment

Agency Information

The Division of Family and Community Health Services (DFCHS) at the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) administers programs and oversees data systems fundamental to maternal and child health (MCH). The division houses six program bureaus, representing the spectrum of MCH and other populations, and one research and evaluation bureau. The internship will be housed at the division level. However, the intern will have opportunities to work with the bureaus, especially the research and evaluation bureau and the two bureaus which house programs for children with special health care needs as these areas are vital to the proposed internship project.

Purpose, goals, and objectives of internship

The Ohio Department of Health engages in an ongoing needs assessment process for the Title V Maternal and Child Health Block Grant. The last 5-year cycle of the needs assessment was completed in 2005 and the current cycle will end in 2010. The last needs assessment identified data gaps and questions, which, to answer, required in-depth analysis of existing data sources. Many of those questions relate to the identified priority needs specific to children with special health care needs. It was recognized that in the last 2 years of the cycle, in which intensive activity is focused on a planning process, time and resources were not available for the creation of new data–based information. The appropriate time for the generation of new databased information from data collection or complex analyses is in the earlier stages of the needs assessment cycle, which is currently where Ohio finds itself.

Purpose
Provide data-based information on health needs and resources among children with special health care needs in Ohio, through analysis of existing databases, to inform later planning activities in Ohio’s current MCH Title V Block Grant needs assessment cycle.

Goals are to provide more detailed information.
1) on the quality of screening, disorder identification, interventions, care coordination, and medical home among CSHCN
2) on the access to comprehensive preventive and treatment services among Ohio’s CSHCN.

The goals will be accomplished using data from one or more of the following sources: The National Survey of Children’s Health, The National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs, and the Ohio Family Health Survey.

Objectives are to
1) develop an analysis plan informed by a literature review of the topic,
2) conduct appropriate and valid analyses given the data sources and research questions outlined in the plan,
3) summarize and interpret results of the analyses, and
4) draft a brief epidemiological report and present an oral presentation to ODH staff.

Data or analytic tasks and activities

The project will require development of research questions; a literature review; writing of an analysis plan; identification of variables of interest (outcome variables, primary variables of interest, potential confounders and effect modifiers) within available databases; recoding of variables as necessary; application of appropriate analysis methods, and interpretation of results, summarizing results in a brief written report; and preparation and presentation of an oral presentation.

Data or analytic skills required

The internship position requires basic SAS data and analytic skills, familiarity with multivariate regression techniques, and writing and communication skills. Familiarity with SUDAAN is preferred.

Supervisors

The primary supervisor will be Elizabeth Conrey, MCH Epidemiologist and CDC field assignee, Division of Family and Community Health Services, Ohio Department of Health and Division of Reproductive Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Conrey has a PhD in Community Nutrition with a minor in Epidemiology from Cornell University. She was an Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Officer with CDC, assigned to the Maternal and Child Nutrition Branch. She is a registered dietitian. Dr. Conrey has experience analyzing public health data, writing reports, publishing peer reviewed journal articles, and supervising students and fellows conducting research activities.

The secondary supervisor will be Ruth Shrock, Title V MCH Block Grant coordinator, Division of Family and Community Health Services, Ohio Department of Health. Ruth has 24 years of experience in public health. She has a Master’s degree in Nutrition and a MPH and is a registered dietitian. Ruth has extensive training and experience in needs assessment and coordinates the needs assessment activities for the MCH Block Grant. She frequently provides training in needs assessment to public health audiences in Ohio. Ruth also has 5 years of supervisory experience in public health research and evaluation. During her 18 years as Nutritionist Administrator in the DFCHS, she was preceptor for many students needing field experiences or internships. At the Ohio State University Nisonger Center, she provided nutrition services to children with developmental disabilities; and at Columbus Children’s Hospital, she was project coordinator for an EPA-funded lead study.

Internship begins

The timing of the internship position is flexible. Summer is preferred.

Housing

Staff will be able to assist the student in locating and securing housing during the internship period. Several bus lines pass directly in front of the ODH building. Apartments, sublets and other housing available for short term lease exist nearby.

Transportation

The Ohio Department of Health is located in downtown Columbus, Ohio, with excellent access to public transportation.