PROBLEM
Adolescents are a special population with high levels of preventable injuries, substance abuse, depression, sexually transmitted disease, teen pregnancy, and obesity, all enumerated among the critical objectives for adolescent health in Healthy People 2010. These problems are most prevalent among economically and socially disadvantaged groups, including poor, minority, homeless, and incarcerated youth and those in foster care. An estimated 10-15% of Americans under 18 years have a physical handicap or chronic illness such as asthma, diabetes, cognitive impairment, or mental illness. Obesity and lack of physical activity loom as critical issues for the health of youth. Despite these challenges, youth are America’s promise. Investing in youth means valuing their contributions and promoting positive youth development so that each teen can become a healthy, productive, caring, and committed adult. Investing in the health of youth also requires an infrastructure of trained health professionals uniquely qualified and in a position to partner with public health agencies, schools, and community based organizations. The Boston LEAH Program is guided by the MCH goals of eliminating barriers and health disparities, assuring quality care, and improving health infrastructure and systems. The project is designed to train culturally competent, diverse leaders in 5 Core disciplines, provide continuing education and technical assistance, and disseminate scholarship through teaching and publications.
GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Goal 1: The primary goal is to provide interdisciplinary training of health care professionals in 5 Core disciplines (medicine, nursing, psychology, social work, and nutrition) for leadership roles in adolescent health by assuring them requisite skills to become effective clinicians, teachers, program leaders, policy makers, public health advocates, health administrators, academic faculty, and/or productive researchers in a variety of health care settings.
1.1 Knowledge about adolescent health; 1.2 Delivery of interdisciplinary care; 1.3 Health care models and program development; 1.4 Cultural Competency; 1.5 Quality Improvement (QI); 1.6 Teaching skills; 1.7 Evaluation of research; 1.8 Conduct of research; 1.9 Legal/ethical principles; 1.10 Advocacy; 1.11 Involvement of youth and families in program planning; 1.12 Long-term Training for leadership positions 1.13 Training to intermediate term trainees; 1.14 Demonstration of leadership in adolescent health at follow-up.
Goal 2: The Boston LEAH Program will work toward improved health status of adolescents, quality care, elimination of health disparities, and Healthy People 2010 Adolescent Objectives through partnerships with professionals, youth, families, and community organizations.
2.1 Collaboration in interdisciplinary teams and interagency networks; 2.2 Partnership with Title V agencies and State Adolescent Health Coordinators and other youth serving organizations; 2.3 Design and implementation of community based interventions and evaluation projects
Goal 3: The faculty and Fellows will advance knowledge and scholarship in adolescent health by developing model youth and family focused, culturally competent programs; by providing continuing education, training, and technical assistance; and by disseminating expert clinical knowledge, new curricula, model programs, and research to enhance capacity building with state Title V, state and local MCH and adolescent health programs, and agencies and professional organizations that serve adolescents.
3.1 Model interdisciplinary clinical care; 3.2 Continuing education course; 3.3 Dissemination of knowledge; 3.4 Technical Assistance; 3.5 Teaching materials; 3.6 Model faculty development; 3.7 Faculty productivity; 3.8 Public health research, and translation of research to policy; 3.9 Performance Measures.
METHODOLOGY
The Boston LEAH Program provides interdisciplinary leadership training in adolescent health to nurses, social workers, physicians, psychologists, and nutritionists. Fellows participate in a rigorous interdisciplinary Leadership curriculum which includes a Leadership Lecture Series; Seminars in Program Development, Advocacy, and Prevention (PDAP), Adolescent Psychological Development, Cultural Competency, School Health, Psychiatry, Nutrition, Reproductive Endocrinology and Gynecology, Eating Disorders, Research, and Teaching. Fellows learn skills in the clinical programs in hospital-based and community-based programs. Fellows participate in teaching activities, learn about QI, health care financing, systems of care, involve youth and families in planning, and conduct cutting-edge research.
COORDINATION
An important goal of this project is to provide model collaboration with the MCHB programs and State Adolescent Health Coordinators in Region 1 and beyond; the Boston LEAH has convened a Regional Advisory Committee to plan continuing education programs, trainings, and technical assistance within the region. Faculty provide consultation to Title V and other publicly funded projects, agencies and multiple professional organizations.
EVALUATION
Evaluations are linked to the overall goals and the objectives of the program and involve quantitative and qualitative assessments. Process evaluations include clinical activity, numbers of trainees, continuing education programs, presentations, publications, grants, internet sites, and technical assistance. The impact of the program on the learning of the trainees is assessed through faculty evaluation of assignments completed, clinical skills, grants and papers written, presentations given, evidence of acquisition of discipline specific knowledge, and participation in conferences. Long-term evaluations are accomplished through annual assessments of training and curriculum, faculty retreats, and follow-up surveys of previous fellows.
ANNOTATION
The Boston LEAH project is designed to train culturally competent, diverse leaders in 5 Core disciplines (medicine, nursing, psychology, social work, and nutrition), provide continuing education and technical assistance, involve youth and families in program planning, translate cutting-edge research to policy, and disseminate scholarship through teaching, publications and internet sites. With the MCH Behavioral Pediatrics and LENDS Programs, the Boston LEAH Program authored the Bright Futures curriculum for primary care providers. LEAH Programs contribute to building capacity and infrastructure for Title V agencies and professional organizations to achieve the Healthy People 2010 Objectives for adolescent health.
KEYWORDS
adolescents, nurses, pediatricians, social work, mental health, cultural diversity, preventive health care, community based health services, continuing education
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