Posts tagged ‘Events’

May 1, 2012

2012 Summer Institute on Adolescent Health: Equal Access, Equal Say: Achieving Health Equity for all Young People

The Center for Leadership Education in Maternal and Child Public Health, in partnership with the Center for Adolescent Nursing, the Minnesota Department of Education, the Healthy Youth Development-Prevention Research Center, the Minnesota Department of Health, and Teenwise Minnesota, is pleased to announce the 2012 Summer Institute on Adolescent Health.

When: July 30- August 2, 2012

Where: Minnesota Department of Health, Snelling Office Park, Minnesota Department of Health Snelling Office Park, 1645 Energy Park Drive, St. Paul, Minnesota 55108

Cost: $250

Register at: http://www.nursing.umn.edu/Adolescent_Nursing/Continuing_Education/home.html.

Change – the one word that best epitomizes adolescence – changing bodies, changing schools, changing friends. While change is essential for healthy transitions to adulthood, it can also increase vulnerability. For young people today, inequitable social conditions in families, schools, and communities can lead to dramatically differing pathways to adulthood, some healthier than others. Inequities in social determinants of health abound – socio-economic status, housing, physical environment, food security, neighborhood safety, social support, health care services, transportation, and working conditions, to name a few.

What helps all young people achieve their highest level of health? Assuring optimal health for all requires equalizing the conditions for health – life-skills, access to quality services, educational attainment, readiness for gainful employment, and opportunities to contribute to their communities in positive ways. This means that we must pay attention to creating services and programs that are accessible, acceptable, appropriate, and effective.

During the 2012 Summer Institute in Adolescent Health, consider the myriad of social, political, educational, environmental, and economic conditions that underlie disparities in health. Visit settings that are successfully addressing avoidable inequalities that impact adolescents. Talk with young people and their program leaders along with health providers and educators who have walked the talk of health equity in just, creative, and empowering ways. Learn strategies for assuring supportive environments, sustaining authentic relationships, and providing services that are responsive to the uniqueness of each young person. Gain new skills to effectively advocate for health equity among all young people.

Who should attend?

All who work with young people – teachers, coaches, and administrators; nurses, physicians, nutritionists, psychologists, social workers, counselors, and youth workers; religious leaders and policy makers.

Contact hours and two graduate credits are available (graduate students only).

April 24, 2012

Strong Foundations: Minnesota’s Birth to Three Institute for Healthy Development

The Center for Leadership Education in Maternal and Child Public Health, the Center for Early Education and Development, the Minnesota Department of Health, the Minnesota Department of Human Services and the Minnesota Department of Education are excited to sponsor Strong Foundations: Minnesota’s Birth to Three Institute for Healthy Development.

The purpose of this institute is to strengthen the knowledge, skills, strategies, and alliances of those who work with expectant families, infants, toddlers, parents and communities to build a strong foundation for healthy development.

When: May 30-31, 2012

Where: Earle Brown Heritage Center, 6155 Earle Brown Drive, Minneapolis, MN

Cost: $195; $165/students. Limited scholarships are available.

Register at: http://www.cehd.umn.edu/CEED/conferences/strongfoundations/default.html

Keynote Speakers include:

  • Sondra Samuels, Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ) President and Chief Executive Officer

Cradle to College is the cornerstone of the work of the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ). Focusing on the importance of community leadership and family engagement, as well as starting early (prenatally), Sondra asserts that taking a life course perspective will positively impact the achievement of all children.

  • Sasha Silveanu, Washington State Family Policy Council, Policy Analyst and Story Tracker

A Powerful Framework will share examples of how communities in Washington State have applied a science-based framework to fuel practice and policy changes. Sasha and her colleagues’ work include strengthening foundations for positive early childhood development; responding to ACEs with innovation and informed care; making accommodations for people, including parents and their children, with high ACEs; and improving response to ACEs focused on resilience and positive adaptation. She will share examples from–but not limited to–the education, social work, child care, mental health, home-visiting, and public health sectors.

Contact hours and graduate credits are available (graduate students only).

March 23, 2012

Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait

The March of Dimes has initiated a new project called Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait (HBWW). This public health campaign strives to prevent factors related to preterm birth, including social, medical and biological influences. Children born prematurely are more likely to have vision and hearing problems, lasting physical and mental disabilities, and learning delays later in life. [i] Aiming for pregnancies that are at least 39 weeks in length decreases the likelihood of children developing health problems There has been a rise of in the number of U.S. births before week 39 over the past two decades, with 12.8% of live births in 2006 classified as a preterm birth. [ii]

The Kentucky Department for Public Health in collaboration with the March of Dimes and Johnson & Johnson Pediatric Institute helped create HBWW: a community-based, preterm birth prevention initiative. An innovative key to the campaign is engaging the community among local- and state-level clinical and public health partners. It includes targeted resources for both the public (info sheet: http://www.marchofdimes.com/pregnancy/getready_atleast39weeks.html) and professionals (toolkit: http://www.marchofdimes.com/professionals/medicalresources_39weeks.html).

How can we use these strategies in our work throughout MCH? This collaborative theory and process influences much of our work, but more can be done across sectors, fields and levels of work. Check out a webinar March 29, 2012 11:00pm CST sponsored by Healthy People 2020 Leading Health Indicators: http://goo.gl/iFJbQ. Participants will learn about how collaboration and partnerships, provider initiatives, patient support, public engagement, and progress measures helped inform HBWW’s conceptualization.


[i] March of Dimes. (2010, April). Your premature baby. Retrieved from March of Dimes: http://www.marchofdimes.com/baby/premature_indepth.html

[ii] March of Dimes (2011). Medical Resources. Retrieved from March of Dimes: http://www.marchofdimes.com/professionals/medicalresources_hbww.html.

January 16, 2012

NCS Speakers’ Series Feeding Young Children: The Good, the Bad and the Picky

The National Children’s Study Speaker Series is sponsored by the Center for Leadership Education in Maternal and Child Public Health and the National Children’s Study – Ramsey County Location. On January 11, 2012, the series offered a talk on “Feeding Young Children: The Good, the Bad and the Picky” by Jamie Stang, PhD, MPH, RD, LN, from the UMN School of Public Health. She describes behaviors of young children that are common concerns of parents, discusses the role of parent feeding styles in early childhood obesity risk, as well as identifies behavioral strategies that parents can utilize to cope with challenging food behaviors. Dr. Stang also discusses the role of food allergies and intolerances in challenging food behaviors of young children.

The archived presentation is now available online: https://umconnect.umn.edu/p51351258/.

For more information on the National Children’s Study, visit their webpage at: http://www.nationalchildrensstudy.gov/Pages/default.aspx

October 6, 2011

Child Health Day

This past October 3, 2011 celebrated the 83rd annual Child Health Day. On this day, we in the Maternal and Child Health field are reminded of the importance of keeping our nation’s children healthy in order to help them live fulfilling lives.

President Calvin Coolidge was the first president to proclaim the day. For more information on MCH history, visit the Maternal and Child Health Bureau’s interactive timeline. You can explore topics and changes in public health over time: http://mchb.hrsa.gov/about/timeline/index.html.

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.