Maternal and Child Health Public Health Catalyst Program - PROBLEM: There is a critical need to prepare highly qualified public health professionals to work alongside communities, public health agencies, community providers, and diverse maternal and child health (MCH) populations to promote health equity in the areas of reproductive, prenatal, and perinatal health; child, adolescent and young adult health; and CYSHCN health and well-being. Disparities in maternal mortality remain urgent and pernicious. The United States ranks 55th in the world for maternal mortality, with Georgia ranking among the worst in the U.S. Furthermore, the maternal mortality rate for non-Hispanic Black women in Georgia is over two times the rate for white women in the state. Beyond maternal mortality, while Georgia keeps pace with the U.S. on several National Performance Measures (NPMs), when data for these NPMs are disaggregated, disparities persist based on race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and disability. Inaccessible care and high rates of uninsured/underinsured contribute to these disparities and pose a persistent threat to infants, mothers, CYSHCN, and other children and adolescents. These access issues exist for populations in urban and suburban areas and are particularly acute for those living in the 124 of Georgia’s 159 counties that are considered rural. GOALS: The overarching goal of this project is to create an MCH training infrastructure at the University of Georgia to support MCH workforce development and ultimately improve health and well-being outcomes for MCH populations locally, statewide, nationally, and globally. This project seeks to 1) Create and deliver high-quality foundational instruction in MCH to support current student and workforce development and provide evidence-based skills to eliminate disparities and promote health equity for MCH populations; 2) Recruit and retain diverse students to MCH who will practice locally, statewide, nationally, and globally; 3) Maintain and expand student involvement in MCH Integrated Learning Experience (ILE) placements; and 4) Enhance student, faculty, community partner, and MCH populations’ leadership capacity through MCH-specific leadership and professional development opportunities. METHODS: We propose creating an MCH training program that will consist of 1) MCH coursework, 2) MCH ILE placements for scholars, 3) a student-led MCH organization, and 4) professional development and leadership opportunities for trainees, community partners, faculty, and people with lived experience. We will develop two new MCH courses that will provide essential foundational coursework for a future MCH certificate coordinate through the UGA College of Public Health. We will recruit and enroll graduate students into the training program and support students in securing MCH ILE placement and stipends. An MCH Student Organization will be created and maintained to promote engagement among like-minded students who share a passion for MCH and who can support each other to build personal and professional networks. Lastly, we will build an MCH Advisory Committee of students, faculty, community partners, and people with lived experience to guide project activities and participate in leadership and professional development opportunities. Throughout these activities, we will work with our existing community partners while also building new partnerships with MCH organizations in the state and sister MCH training programs across the region. EVALUTION: Guided by our Advisory Committee and informed by collaborative needs assessments, we will finalize objectives and benchmarks to evaluate progress toward our program goals. These outcome objectives will encompass measures such as the integration of skills into practice, the number of scholars placed in MCH practica and careers within MCH agencies, leadership skill development and use among scholars, Advisory Committee members, and MCH faculty; and the outcomes of collaborative MCH initiatives with our partners
