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Problem:
As the number of children with or at risk for neurodevelopmental disabilities in CA rises, so does the need for leaders across disciplines who achieve interdisciplinary clinical and research competencies, knowledge of complex service systems and skills to advocate with families in the policy arena.
Goals and Objectives:
Goal 1: To meet the need, especially in CA, to train leaders who specialize in the health care of, and systems of care for, children with, or at risk for, neurodevelopmental disabilities and their families.
Objective 1: To recruit & train annually 12-15 long-term trainees & 45-50 intermediate & short-term trainees in 10 disciplines, 40% of whom represent culturally, racially, & linguistically diverse communities, to meet identified LEND competencies in the care of children with neurodevelopmental disabilities.
Objective 2: To enhance university-based pre-service professional training programs by providing 20 or more courses per year focusing on emerging issues/research findings in health care and/or care systems for children with neurodevelopmental disabilities.
Objective 3: To provide training opportunities in service clinics for children with neurodevelopmental disabilities and their families in 3 LEND clinics, 15 other hospital clinics, and community-based programs meeting needs of underserved populations, including rural communities through the use of telemedicine.
Goal 2: To strengthen partnerships with Title V and related programs by meeting their training needs through provision of continuing education, technical assistance and dissemination of educational resources.
Objective 1: To develop and implement at least 20 educational events per year, at least half will utilize distance learning technology.
Objective 2: To strengthen community-based services, and enhance trainee exposure to understanding service systems, by responding to at least 10 statewide and national technical assistance/ consultation requests, and by serving on at least 85 committees, task forces and advisory boards per year.
Objective 3: To enhance the knowledge of MCH professionals through the development and national dissemination of at least 25 products and publications (curricular materials, technical models and other educational resources) delivered via the UCEDD Web Page, presentations at conferences and marketing strategies.
Methodology:
The interdisciplinary core curriculum provides the basis for most of the activities that fulfill the training objectives, which include 36 interdisciplinary compentencies in 8 domains: neurodevelopmental and related disabilities, team process, public policy, systems of care, research, leadership skills. Aquisition of competencies is tracked using individualized leadership training plans. A system of center-based, hospital-based, and community-based clinical and other training sites provides the setting to meet pre-service training needs. Additional pre-service education is furnished through university lectures and courses at the 4 affiliating institutions - 14 schools, colleges, departments. Continuing education workshops, seminars and distance learning activities, especially focused on our programmatic areas of expertise - leadership education, prevention and early intervention, access to care, children and youth at risk - are provided at local, state, regional and national levels, often in partnership with our Title V and other collaborators. Research and other scholarly projects are developed through interdisciplinary and interagency collaboration, driven by needs identified via established and ad hoc advisory boards that include faculty, trainees, parents and professionals from the community. Program products are disseminated through workshops, professional meetings and publication in professional journals.
Coordination:
Collaboration with California Medical Services (CMS) ranges from joint service delivery and reciprocal training, to provision of technical assistance at State and County levels, to developing and implementing joint grant proposals to respond to State Title V needs. We also leverage our resources through collaboration with the PacWest LEND Consortium and the other MCHB-funded leadership training programs in Los Angeles. Title V collaboration nationally goes well beyond the west.
Evaluation:
Both process (monitoring progress toward meeting the time-framed and measurable objectives) and outcome criteria will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the training program. Long-term follow-up surveys will be used to document the outcomes/impact of our graduates and our on-going activities on health status, systems change and advancement of the knowledge base of the field.
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