The Maternal and Child Health Epidemiology (MCH EPI) Program is a collaborative effort between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Health Resources and Services Administration. Since 1987, MCH EPI has assigned more than 30 senior CDC epidemiologists focused on MCH EPI capacity building and applied research to 18 states, and 5 other public health agencies and organizations (including Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, CityMatCH, Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, and the Indian Health Services). In subsequent years, the program has also sponsored an annual national scientific conference, fellowships, and training initiatives. The MCH EPI Program’s mission is to promote and improve the health and well-being of women, children, and families by building MCH epidemiology and data capacity at the state, local, and tribal levels to effectively use and apply epidemiologic research and scientific information to inform public health action. This mission is accomplished at the local, state, national, and international level by developing MCH EPI leaders, promoting and supporting MCH EPI research, offering fellowships, promoting peer exchange to the field, and providing training and education. MCH EPI’s many partners in this effort include the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) at HRSA, the Association of MCH Programs (AMCHP),* CityMatCH,* the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE),* March of Dimes* (http://www.marchofdimes.com/), and others. Develop MCH EPI LeadersMCH EPI has made significant impact in epidemiologic research and applied science in the field. The use of applied research and the activities targeting capacity building in MCH epidemiology has allowed states and localities to move forward in improving the overall health of mothers, children, and families. The purpose is to not only provide direct assistance to public health agencies through the assigning of senior CDC MCH epidemiologists and fellows, but to promote the analytic capability and increase the ability to apply scientific and research evidence of the agencies where the senior MCH epidemiologists are assigned. In fiscal year 2008, 19 state public health agencies have 12 MCH epidemiologists or 8 MCH fellows sponsored by the MCH EPI program.
CDC Sponsored MCH
Epidemiologists—FY 2008
Reproductive Health in the United States-Mexico Border
Region MCH EPI Assessment and Monitoring Tool for MCH EPI and Data
Capacity MCH Field-Based Assignees/Fellows Publications List, 2004 to Present (Doc 82KB) Peer ExchangeMCH EPI Conference: The annual conference brings together more than 500 MCH professionals to present research, share experiences, enhance knowledge, and discuss emerging MCH topics. The results are improved MCH research activities in the field, data use, networking, increased mentoring opportunities, and informed policymaking. Archived sessions from previous MCH EPI conferences are available for review. MCH EPI Grand Rounds: Nearly every month CDC's Division of Reproductive Health hosts an interactive Web cast* that focuses on research relevant to practicing MCH epidemiologists. Previous topics this year included, "Vaccines Before, During, and After Pregnancy—A Review of New and 'Old' Recommendations"; "Declines in Low Birth Weight and Preterm Birth among Infants Born to HIV-Infected Mothers, PSD Cohort, 1989–2004"; "Instrumental Variables Regression and Other Statistical Techniques to Identify Causal Effects in Observational Datasets"; "Health Care Costs Attributable to Prenatal Smoking: Past and Current Research"; and "Emerging Infectious Diseases: Challenges to the Study, Prophylaxis, and Treatment of Pregnant Women"; “Exploring Opportunities for Research and Surveillance in Sickle Cell Disease”; “Follow Up of Extremely Low Birth Weight Infants and the Impact on Infant Mortality”; and “Body Mass Index (BMI) Surveillance of Ohio 3rd Grade Students, 2004–2005.”
DataSpeak: Sponsored by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), DataSpeak is a series of web conferences that feature special topics related to Maternal and Child Health (MCH) data, including research on children with special health care needs (CSHCN). Each event features one or more speakers who are considered experts in their field. Visit the archived events for streamed archives of past DataSpeak programs.
MCH Library at Georgetown University* Jobs/Fellowship Opportunities CSTE*: The Council of State and
Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) is a professional association of public
health epidemiologists in states and territories working together to detect,
prevent, and control conditions of public health significance.
CSTE and CDC*
jointly sponsor an applied epidemiology fellowship program.
Data Links
From Data to Action: This monograph
describes the state of the art for surveillance at CDC and discusses
applications of public health data. It aids health professionals in
collecting, examining, and applying data to improve the health of women and
children. PRAMS: The Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System is a surveillance project of the CDC and state health departments. PRAMS’ collects state-specific, population-based data on maternal attitudes and experiences prior to, during, and immediately following pregnancy. SLAITS: The State and Local Area Integrated Telephone Survey (SLAITS) collects important health care data at state and local levels. NCHS: As the leading statistics agency, the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) compiles statistical information to guide actions and policies to improve the people's health. Peristats (http://www.marchofdimes.com/peristats/): This online source for perinatal statistics, developed by the March of Dimes Perinatal Data Center, provides free access to maternal and infant health-related data at the U.S.-, state-, county-, and city-level, and was developed to ensure that health professionals, researchers, medical librarians, policymakers, students, and the media have easy access to this information. Data provided by NCHS are updated throughout the year, and useful for multiple tasks, including fact-finding, health assessments, grant writing, policy development, lectures and presentations.
In partnership with others, the MCH EPI Program supports diverse training opportunities in epidemiology, biostatistics, program evaluation, and scientific writing to improve the data and analytic skills of staff from state and local public health agencies.
MCHB-HRSA /CDC Training: The
Maternal and Child Health Bureau at HRSA and CDC collaborate on multiple
projects and training in MCH epidemiology. This includes an MCH EPI short
course and a doctoral training program. For general information on
MCHB.
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