Instructions: Please complete this assessment to reflect the need for graduate and continuing MCH training of employees in your agency. Your response to this assessment is very important and we appreciate your willingness to complete it in its entirety. Please place your completed form in the accompanying post-paid envelope and return to Dr. Greg Alexander. If you have questions, he can be reached at (205) 934-7161.

Please indicate the professional staff level that best describes your role in your agency/ organization:

Please indicate the approximate number of full-time equivalent employees in your MCH, CSHCN or related agency/organization: _____________

Graduate Education Needs in MCH

(Graduate education entails graduate level courses taken for academic credit leading to a graduate degree.)

Given the mission of your agency/organization, would there be any benefit for any member of your staff to have earned a graduate degree in maternal and child health or to pursue graduate level education in maternal and child health? _____ Yes _____No

Below is a list of skills you may consider important for graduates of MCH-funded training programs to successfully participate in the MCH workforce of today. Please rate these skills on a scale of 1-5, 1 being "least important" and 5 being "most important."

Least Most

1. Scientific and Philosophical Basis of MCH (human growth and development, population health, history and philosophy) 1 2 3 4 5

2. Core Public Health Skills 1 2 3 4 5

(biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health, social and behavioral sciences, health administration)

3. Data, Analytic and Epidemiology Skills (data systems design, data collection, analysis and interpretation, study design, data-based decision making) 1 2 3 4 5

4. Program Management and Administration (program planning/development//implementation/evaluation, budgeting, administration, personnel management, quality improvement) 1 2 3 4 5

5. Policy and Advocacy Skills 1 (coalition building, the legislative process, policy analysis/ development/enactment) 1 2 3 4 5

6. Leadership and Systems Development Skills (organization and financing of MCH policies and programs, an MCH vision, service integration, strong interpersonal skills) 1 2 3 4 5

7. Advanced Clinical and Subspecialty Skills 1 2 3 4 5

8. Cross-cutting Issues (ethics, cultural competency, family-centered, community-based, coordinated service systems) 1 2 3 4 5

Form1mch/cshcn
Please add any very important skills not in this list that you believe are needed now or in the future:
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Of these skills listed above, including any you may have added to the list, please identify in order of importance the FIVE you feel are the most critical for graduate education in MCH:
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
To what extent are you able to find available professionals (for open positions in your program) that possess the skills you believe are critical to effectively meeting the needs of the MCH population(s) you serve?
Easy to find 1 2 3 4 5 Unable to find
Please indicate in order of importance the critical skill areas you find most difficult to obtain when hiring new staff.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
With regard to professional discipline, which are the most critical unmet areas for MCH graduate education in your agency/organization, either for purposes of recruitment of new staff, or for professional development of existing staff? Please rate the following disciplines on a scale of 1-5, 1 being "least critical" and 5 being "most critical."

Least Most: Circle One

Audiology/Speech Pathology 1 2 3 4 5 Dentistry 1 2 3 4 5
Early Childhood Education 1 2 3 4 5
Genetics 1 2 3 4 5
Health Care Administration 1 2 3 4 5
Health Education 1 2 3 4 5
Management, Business Administration 1 2 3 4 5
MCH Epidemiology 1 2 3 4 5
Medicine 1 2 3 4 5
MPH specifically in MCH 1 2 3 4 5
Nurse Midwifery 1 2 3 4 5
Nurse Practitioner 1 2 3 4 5
Nursing 1 2 3 4 5
Nutrition 1 2 3 4 5
Least Most

If money and access (time and distance)

Occupational Therapy 1 2 3 4 5

Physical Therapy 1 2 3 4 5

Physician Assistant 1 2 3 4 5

Psychology 1 2 3 4 5

Public Administration 1 2 3 4 5

Public Health (MPH) 1 2 3 4 5

Public Policy 1 2 3 4 5

Social Work 1 2 3 4 5

Other (please specify)

1 2 3 4 5

1 2 3 4 5

1 2 3 4 5

What proportion of your current staff do you believe could use and would benefit from graduate education?

(0 - 100%) __________%
What factors do you believe prevent you or your staff from seeking graduate education in MCH, if such would be beneficial to the agency/organization and of interest to the staff?
_____ distance to a graduate education program _____ cost of graduate education _____ ability to take leave from work to pursue graduate education _____ loss of income while in school _____ time required to complete a full degree program _____ training programs often filled/long waiting lists _____ other (please specify)
Continuing Education Needs in MCH
Given the mission of your agency/organization, would there be any benefit for any member of your staff to participate in continuing education programs in maternal and child health?
_____ Yes _____No
For each level of staff in your agency/organization, please rate the level of general need for continuing education in MCH (1 to 5, 5 being the greatest need):

Least Greatest

Agency/Organization Director 1 2 3 4 5 NA

Program Manager 1 2 3 4 5 NA

Program Staff 1 2 3 4 5 NA

Other: (please specify type of staff)

1 2 3 4 5 NA

1 2 3 4 5 NA

In the following table, for each level of staff, please rate each topic on a scale of 1-5, with 1 being "least important" and 5 being "most important."

Continuing Education Topics Director ProgramManager ProgramStaff Other *

Clinical Skills

Coalition Building

Community Development, Empowerment

Cost-effectiveness Analysis

Cultural Competency

Data Analysis and Interpretation

Data-base Development

Data-base Linkage

Environmental Health

Families as Partners in Policy Making

Family-Centered Care

Funding Formulas, Resource Allocation

Geographic Data Analysis

Health Care Financing and Delivery

Information Systems

Interagency Collaboration

Legislative Advocacy

Managing Change

Marketing and Communication

MCH Epidemiology

Media Relations

Needs Assessment

Negotiation and Team Building

Performance Measurement

Personnel Management

Policy Development and Analysis

Program Evaluation

Program Implementation, Management

Program Planning, Development

Public and Consumer Involvement

Qualitative Methods

Quality Assessment and Assurance

Resource Development

Social Marketing, Health Education

Surveillance, Health Status Monitoring

Survey Design and Administration

Systems Development

Please add any topics not in this list that you believe are needed now or in the future:

* In the last column of the table above, please mark the five you feel are the most important overall.
Think about the other agencies/organizations with which you work/collaborate in supporting your MCH goals, objectives and systems development efforts (for example, mental health, substance abuse, child welfare, early intervention, education, child care, juvenile justice, Medicaid).
In the left column, please indicate on a scale of 1-5 how useful information about these other organizations would be to your agency/organization to work with them most effectively to meet the needs of the MCH population(s) you serve. In the right column, please indicate on a scale of 1-5 what you believe these other organizations might want or need to know about MCH in order to further the development of systems that support and effectively meet the needs of MCH populations. (1 being "least" and 5 being "most.")
MCH needs to know about others': Topics Others need to know about MCH's:
Current program and policy priorities
Data systems, client or target population information gathered, needs assessments
Funding streams and allowable expenditures
Mission, goals and objectives
Organizational structures, staffing patterns
Relationship to other related programs or agencies
Service delivery capacity; size of client population; geographic service areas
Statutory basis and regulations, federal
Statutory basis and regulations, state
Underlying philosophy, theory or history
How to access and utilize the services they offer
How to refer clients or families to them
Other:
Other:
Please consider the following methods of delivering continuing education. In the table, please indicate your level of interest, your agency/organization's capacity to use, and, finally, your preference for each modality with 1 being "least" and 5 being "most."
Modality Interest Capacity Preference
Distance -satellite/Interactive TV
Distance -internet, Web-based
Video cassettes
Audio, teleconferencing
On-site at the workplace
In-state conference
Out-of-state conference
Large conference (>100)
Small conference (<100)
Workshop emphasizing peer discussion
Workshop emphasizing hands-on experience
Lecture
Self-study/Independent study materials
Reading journals or research papers
Audio cassettes
Coursework for credit at college
Other (specify)
Does your agency/organization currently have the capacity to access Web-based instruction, whether for continuing education or for graduate credit-earning courses?
Yes_____ No_____
If "Yes," does your agency/organization allow staff to access Web-based instruction during working hours?
Yes_____ No_____ How many hours per week? _____________________
Please rate the factors below that you believe prevent you or your staff from seeking continuing education in MCH? (1 = most important)
_____ limited geographic access _____ agency/organization travel restrictions _____ cost of continuing education programs _____ time away from work _____ lack of adequate staffing _____ lack of CEU availability _____ insufficient capacity of available training programs _____ other (please specify)
To what extent does your agency/organization have the capacity to provide training to your own staff ?
Little capacity 1 2 3 4 5 Extensive capacity
To what extent do you routinely assess the needs for training among your staff?
Do not assess 1 2 3 4 5 Routinely assess
To what extent does your agency/organization have the capacity to provide training to others on MCH topics?
Little capacity 1 2 3 4 5 Extensive capacity
To what extent do you routinely assess the needs for training among other constituencies/agencies/organizations with whom you work?
Do not assess 1 2 3 4 5 Routinely assess
Please approximate the number of continuing education programs in maternal and child health that you/your agency/organization provides each year to:
______ your own staff ______ don't know ______ others outside your agency/organization or program ______ don't know
If you had/have designated funds with which to purchase continuing education for yourself or your staff:
Which MCH topics would/do receive the first training dollars?
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
If you had/have designated funds with which to purchase continuing education for yourself or your staff:
Which level or type of staff would/do receive the first training dollars, e.g. program managers, clinical staff, etc.?
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
What do you believe should be the top five priorities for the Maternal and Child Health Bureau's Training Program?
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
Looking to the future and the challenges emerging in MCH, are there any other skill areas beyond those already mentioned that you believe will need to be enhanced within the staff of youragency/organization?
To what extent do you believe you are made aware of graduate or continuing education opportunities in MCH?
Graduate Training: I am aware of ______ most, ______ some, _____few, _____ none, ____ don't know
Continuing Education: I am aware of ______ most, _____ some, ______few, _____none, _____ don't know
How helpful would you find an information clearinghouse on MCHB-funded continuing education opportunities?
Not helpful 1 2 3 4 5 Very helpful
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR COMPLETING THIS SURVEY.