University of Minnesota

Problem:

Leadership training is needed to prepare nutritionists at community, state, and national levels to implement essential public health services and core functions, to achieve the Year 2010 objectives and to ensure accessibility to culturally competent, community based, family centered care systems.

Goals and Objectives:

Goal 1: Faculty will demonstrate leadership, mentor trainees, advance the field through scholarship, and translate research and knowledge into best practices. Objective 1: Faculty will demonstrate leadership in the field of public health and MCH nutrition. Objective 2: Faculty will conduct research and disseminate findings to generate new knowledge for health promotion of MCH populations. Objective 3: Faculty will develop and disseminate new knowledge and best practices through the website, scientific meetings and publications. Goal 2: Train public health nutrition students who represent diverse racial/ethnic groups to be effective leaders who will strive to improve the health of the MCH population and reduce health disparities. Objective 1: Recruit and train graduate nutrition students from diverse racial/ethnic groups who demonstrate strong leadership potential and academic credentials. Each year 3 MCH nutrition trainees will enter the program; after 5 years, 15 trainees will have completed the program. Objective 2: Recruit and train graduate students who represent diverse racial/ethnic groups. At least 25% of MCH nutrition trainees will be from ethnically diverse backgrounds. Objective 3: All trainees will receive training in cultural competence and health disparities and choose field experiences that allow them to work with racially/ethnically diverse MCH populations. Goal 3: Provide innovative and high quality graduate education in public health nutrition with a focus on MCH nutrition and leadership enhancement. Objective 1: Provide a high quality competency-based public health nutrition education program at the master’s and doctoral level with a specialization in MCH nutrition and leadership enhancement to at least 15 public health nutrition and maternal and child health students each year. Objective 2: Prepare trainees to assume leadership positions. Within 3 years of graduation, 85% of nutrition trainees will have a MCH leadership/management position. Objective 3: Ensure that the educational program and leadership training is vital, relevant, and responsive to the current and emerging trends in the field. Goal 4: Develop and provide continuing education (CE) for health professionals to enhance their knowledge and skills in MCH nutrition. Objective 1: Offer an annual national maternal nutrition conference for health professionals with a distance education component. Objective 2: Collaborate with MCH and public health nutrition professionals to identify the CE needs for MCH nutrition and provide workshops, institutes, or short courses for health professionals on MCH nutrition issues identified. Objective 3: Provide annual leadership development training for HRSA/MCHB and USDA nutritionists, state nutrition directors, and breastfeeding coordinators in Regions V, VI, and VII at their bi-annual on-site meeting or through distance education. Goal 5: Provide technical assistance (TE) and consultation on MCH nutrition topics within our expertise to local, state and national MCH agencies and programs. Objective 1: Collaborate with MCH and PHN professionals to identify training and outreach needs for TA, and provide TA and consultation as needed. Objective 2: Increase knowledge and skills on MCH nutrition issues among health professionals and faculty from other Schools of Public Health who do not have a PHN program. During the 5-year grant period, 3 nutrition teaching modules will be developed and made available on our web site. Objective 3: Collaborate with other national MCHB-supported Nutrition Training Projects, as well as UMN MCHB-supported training programs.

Methodology:

To accomplish our goals and objectives, we have a well-established curriculum for the 16-month MPH degree and a PhD program in Nutrition. The competency-based curriculum integrates knowledge and skills from 6 competency domains: PHN science and practice; maternal and child health; methods and analytical skills; management, leadership, and communication; policy and advocacy; and cultural competence. MPH students complete supervised field experiences, write a Master’s project paper and pass a final comprehensive oral examination. The curriculum is regularly updated to reflect changing needs in the field of PHN. The leadership development component consists of the MCH leadership course, a mentoring program, and collaborative leadership seminars with the other funded UMN MCHB programs. To accomplish our continuing education goal and objectives, an annual 3-day national conference on maternal nutrition with a distance education component will be offered. We will also provide a Summer Public Health Institute course and local/ regional CE workshops. Annual leadership development training will be held for PHN and MCH regional nutrition directors. To increase knowledge and skills in MCH nutrition among health professionals and University faculty we will develop three teaching modules, as well as educational resources such as best practices guidelines, that will be available through the website.

Coordination:

The Program has strong collaborative partnerships with relevant academic programs at the UMN, including 4 other Title V training programs; Title V agencies in Regions V, VII, and bordering states in Region VIII (SD, ND); and an extensive network of community professionals in public and private agencies in the Midwest. A MCH Nutrition Advisory Board guides all program activities.

Evaluation:

Process and outcome indicators for each goal and objective are specified. Key data will include the number of students admitted; student grades, field preceptors evaluations, and Master’s project quality; the number of CE events and participants; and number of consultations and collaborations with community agencies. Students will self-evaluate their own leadership training needs and personal progress toward meeting their leadership development goals.

Experience to Date:

Over the past year, training grant faculty, staff and students have reached more than 11,900 people through local and distance education CE efforts; provided TA or consultation to 29 local, state, national and international health agencies or organizations; conducted 24 grant-funded MCH nutrition-related research projects; published 52 articles in peer reviewed journals, 3 book chapters and one book; provided 73 presentations at scientific meetings, other universities, or national and state nutrition and MCH meetings; and provided training to 5 long-term, 37 medium and 265 short-term trainees, representing 9 different disciplines. Trainees were involved in writing 10 journal articles.