So you want to be a leader… but how?

Leadership Competencies are complicated and difficult to assess. How do you measure critical thinking? How do you know if someone has successfully reflected on personal goals, strengths or limitations? If this type of growth is ongoing and subjective, how do we know if an individual is where they should be in their development or training? The University of Minnesota Leadership Education in Maternal and Child Health is implementing innovative strategies to target these necessary leadership skills. Having public health graduate students attend Association of Maternal and Child Health’s (AMCHP) 2012 conference is one way we can do just that.

Check-out student’s reflections on their experience at AMCHP below and how attending benefited their professional and personal development. We have some noteworthy personal assessments going on!

Constructing a Core MCH Knowledge Base
“Over the course of the conference, I met people who were obstetricians, pediatricians, midwives, doulas and people who were epidemiologists, analysts, policy specialists and even journalists all working in the field of MCH. That’s when I realized how MCH is everything – everything affects the lives of mothers and children and how they in turn, effect everything else.” – Vidya Venkataraman, 1^st year

Critical Thinking
“Every session I went to buzzed with the vocabulary and tools I have gathered in my methodology courses and scientific-based women’s health classes.  As I articulated my ideas in conversation with MCH leaders from across the nation, I was reminded that our program has encouraged me to think critically and it has allotted me the growth and confidence I need to start my professional MCH career.”  –Lucy Cosgrove, 2^nd year

Interdisciplinary Team Building
“From developing partnerships with community stakeholders to address local public health issues to sharing best practices between state Title V agencies, collaboration emerged as an essential component of MCH work.” –Elisabeth Seburg, 2^nd year

“In order to progress further in eliminating disparities and improving better access to quality health care for those without such services will require efforts and collaboration from individuals in all disciplines.” – MaiSee Moua, 2^nd year

Collaboration with the Wider-Community
“One thing that I took from a session I attended at AMCHP was that public health needs to work alongside communities to promote their unique strengths. From examining these strengths, public health professionals have the opportunity to implement sustainable change within a community.” –Sarah MapelLentz, 2^nd year

 Building a Professional Network
“Overall, I think that it is a great opportunity for students to network with important people in MCH as well as an opportunity to see the many ways in which our course work is being applied throughout the country.” – Danielle Young, 2^nd year

 Passion
“It was truly inspiring to be around 700+ people who share my passion and to hear the stories of the speakers, award recipients, and of the spoken word performers. It was a great reminder as to why I’ve chosen to devote my life to this field.” – Jess Nelson, 1^st year

How can conferences support other areas of development? How can we creatively address other competencies such as ethics and professionalism or advocacy?

You can evaluate your leadership development and skills through the Maternal and Child Health Bureau’s Assessment tools. Check them out and take the tests! http://leadership.mchtraining.net/?page_id=71

You can also view pictures and materials from the MCHB Joint Interdisciplinary Training Meeting that occurred during AMCHP. The Maternal and Child Health Bureau Training Program gave students, trainees and faculty the chance to discuss innovative practices in leadership training. http://www.aucd.org/template/event.cfm?event_id=2727&id=0

MCH Student Elisabeth Seburg ‘LEND’s an ear at AMCHP

Elisabeth Seburg is a second year MPH student at the University of Minnesota School Of Public Health. She is in the Maternal and Child Health program as well as a fellow in the University of Minnesota Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) Program. As a trainee in two MCHB funded programs, Elisabeth tells us about her unique experience at AMCHP this year.

As a MCH graduate student and a LEND trainee, attending the 2012 AMCHP Annual Conference in Washington D.C was an incredibly valuable experience. I had the opportunity to connect with MCH leaders and learn about innovative MCH programs and initiatives across the country. My main take away from the conference is the importance of collaboration in public health work. From developing partnerships with community stakeholders to address local public health issues to sharing best practices between state Title V agencies, collaboration emerged as an essential component of MCH work.

While I attended many interesting and thought-provoking sessions at AMCHP, a power workshop on disability and women’s health stands out in my mind. The workshop, “Identifying Public Health Practices to Reduce Health Disparities in Women with Disabilities,” featured 3 speakers who shared work to address health disparities among women with disabilities. In addition to providing a good overview of disability-related health disparities, the session offered examples of initiatives to decrease these disparities. One example is the Initiative for Women with Disabilities (IWD) at the Elly & Steve Hammerman Health & Wellness Center, a health center for women with physical disabilities. IWD provides accessible health services to women with disabilities. Keeping with its holistic view of health, IWD also offers accessible activities to women with physical disabilities, such as adaptive rowing and belly dancing. I was excited to see a session on disability and health because my master’s project pertains to this topic, but, more broadly, the programs described in this workshop can serve as models for the field of MCH as we work to eliminate health disparities in women with disabilities.

For more information about IWD: http://iwd.med.nyu.edu/

For more information about disability health disparities: http://content.healthaffairs.org.ezp2.lib.umn.edu/content/30/10/1947.full

Love from AMCHP!

Happy Valentine’s Day! Welcome to our up-coming series on the 2012 Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP) Annual Conference! Over a dozen students here in Washington D.C. have represented Minnesota’s MCH program. If you did not have the opportunity to attend, stop on by to hear about participants’ experiences. Today is the last day of this MCH-focused meeting.

As attendees, we went to power workshops and skills-building sessions in between catching-up with one another. We networked, talking to influential leaders in our field and building relationships with alumni, MCH workers from Minnesota, and leaders from around the nation. Some of us are trying to get our name out there and learn of possible opportunities before us as we near graduation. Others explored national issues for the first time, focusing on how various state agencies are addressing MCH Competencies.

Come back for pictures in the coming days, as well as reflections from students who attended in the conference. We look forward to using our new knowledge to teach others and create change in the field.

In celebration of Valentines’ Day, give your heart some love today. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in all males and females. Take some time to get your blood pressure checked and urge your family, friends and co-workers to do the same.