Funded Projects

Problem:

People in Louisiana, particularly women and children, have poor health. The Tulane MCH-TP seeks to improve the health status of women, infants, children, youth, and their families by developing MCH professionals exhibiting strong professionalism and cultural competency in public health leadership.

Goals and Objectives:

Goal 1: To provide innovative leadership and career development training for students, PH professionals and faculty in an interdisciplinary MCH setting through exposure to and practice of MCH competencies. Objective 1: Provide comprehensive MCH education, mentoring and leadership development training for 20 long-term MCH trainees selected from a total of 100 PH students by 2015. Objective 2: Advance and refine our MPH, PhD and DrPH programs incorporating the MCH, ATMCH, and ASPH competencies and PH workforce challenges during the five-year training grant cycle. Objective 3: Promote faculty mentoring, leadership and career development, by sponsoring and/or co-sponsor three annual seminars/workshops for this purpose. Goal 2: To integrate key principles of PH practice, i.e. cultural competence, family-centered practice, family participation and evidence-based PH into the teaching, research and practice of the Department. Objective 1: Develop and implement a departmental cultural competence action plan by 2011, including organizational self-assessment i.e. SWOT, policy supporting dedicated resources for promoting cultural competence, and ongoing improvement procedures. Objective 2: Work with community, students, faculty to ensure community partnerships in carrying out CHS teaching, research and practice Objective 3: By 2013, develop one new graduate level course and two seminars focusing on evidence based PH in MCH. Goal 3: To conduct and disseminate research and other academic activities aimed at the advancement of the evidence base for MCH practice. Objective 1: Refine and expand our capability to develop, conduct and disseminate community-oriented MCH research during the five-year training grant cycle. Objective 2: Encourage publication of at least 2 papers per FTE faculty per year, at least 50% of them in peer-reviewed journals with an impact factor >1. Objective 3: Assure that at least 30% of the MCH students will work on a faculty project and a mean of 4 MCH students per year will present findings at national meetings by 2015. Goal 4: To strengthen partnerships with the community and MCH agencies by providing technical assistance, and professional consultation, sharing resources, and collaborating on MCH projects Objective 1: Develop and provide at least four annual teleconference sessions and five asynchronous internet courses for Title V OPH professionals addressing issues related to leadership, career development and aspects of MCH assessment, monitoring and evaluation by 2014. Objective 2: Provide technical assistance, collaborations, and/or human resources to at least four Title V related programs on at least five discrete issues per year. Objective 3: Provide a yearlong mentored fellowship for 3 MCH MPH students in women's health policy the first year.

Methodology:

The Tulane MCH-TP will build on its uniquely close relationship with the LA OPH Title V program, its strong academic program, and its community collaborations and university resources to: train and mentor students, develop faculty, advance research, serve the community, and provide training to current MCH professionals. Some of the specific activities include: individual mentoring sessions with students; skill-building seminars; development of new courses; guiding select group of trainees through an individualized leadership development process; sponsoring or co-sponsoring leadership and career development events for faculty; mentoring relationships for faculty; mentoring workshops for PH practitioners who serve as practicum preceptors for MPH students; leadership and career development teleconferences for Title V OPH professionals; hiring additional faculty; departmental self-assessment and development and implementation of plan related to cultural competency; creating a feedback structure to measure the quantity and quality of partnerships and monitor progress; formalizing a MCH/Nutrition dual major concentration; increasing training capacity in areas of breastfeeding (BF) and preconception health; paper publication; student work on faculty projects; student presentations at national meetings; incorporation of more Web 2.0 interactive technologies; development of asynchronous internet courses in the area of MCH Assessment, Monitoring and Evaluation.

Coordination:

Our active partnerships with LA OPH as well as other Title V agencies and community organizations; shared faculty; field placements for MPH students; research projects; continuing education, maximize the impact of the MCH-TP because of sharing of expertise and resources.

Evaluation:

All objectives will be measure quantitatively and/or qualitatively. Data sources include: 1)a student database that tracks demographics, educational background, practicum information, and advising, 2)surveys of entrants, graduates, and alumni to measure changes in self-efficacy in leadership skills and to document accomplishments, and 3)tracking reports to measure research and service to public health agencies by faculty. Qualitative measures will evaluate satisfaction of stakeholders.

Experience to Date:

The Tulane MCHLT has provided stipends for 16 long-term trainees in the past year. Four are continuing students, and the other 8 graduated in May 2011. We have also provided long-term training for another 32 students and, in the form of lunchtime seminars, short-term training for approximately 125. We have published 32 peer-reviewed manuscripts. Ten oral and poster presentations have been given, including one poster by students at the American Public Health Association meeting sharing the results of their student-led project. We have cosponsored several successful seminar series and continue to offer a leadership course for MPH students. We are also undergoing significant changes and transitions. After 12 years with the department and 6 years with the grant, Jeanette Magnus has stepped down as PD to pursue a position in Oslo. Carolyn Johnson has taken over as PD and head of the MCH section and Carl Kendall is acting chair of the department. Joan Wightkin, who served as the State Title V director for decades has retired and we are forging a new relationship with her replacement, Amy Zapata. We are also strengthening our relationship with the CDC-funded Training Center at Tulane and the UAB SPH Training grant, collaborating on several online offerings. We are making progress on the development of a series of MCH-related Monitoring and Evaluation courses, expecting them to be online in the coming months.