September 19, 2024

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September 19, 2024

AMCHP Announcements

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AMCHP Building Resilience from Lived Experience Lessons Learned Snapshot & Compilation Video Now Available

In November 2022, AMCHP launched the Building Resilience from Lived Experience anthology, in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD).

Originally aimed at creating a toolkit for improving emergency responses for maternal and child health (MCH) populations, this project has instead become a collection of personal and professional stories highlighting the impacts of emergencies to build evidence for equitable response strategies, prompt action at all levels, and ensure others with lived experience feel seen.

With September marking the observance of National Preparedness Month, AMCHP is excited to share a snapshot of lessons learned throughout this journey, as well as a compilation video with highlights from the anthology contributions, recorded conference panels, and reflections from our team about the project and its significance.

Please join us in recognizing the incredible AMCHP staff who created and executed this project, celebrating the courageous contributors of the anthology, and thanking our partners at NCBDDD and funders at the CDC.

Explore our compilation video and lessons learned snapshot, and revisit and share the series with your network to further its impact.

AMCHP is Awarded $3.4M to Form National Coordinating Center on Transition

AMCHP is pleased to have been awarded a $3.4 million cooperative agreement from the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau (HRSA MCHB) to form the new National Coordinating Center on Transition. AMCHP will work closely with partners at Family Voices, Child Trends, and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), alongside other national experts working collaboratively with a National Transition Advisory Council that will be comprised of at least 50% of young people and family members/caregivers.

This five-year project aims to develop and advance national, state, and local/community-level frameworks that support a successful transition from child to adult serving systems for youth with autism and/or epilepsy who have complex health and social needs and require a higher level of family support and coordination. AMCHP and its partners will provide national leadership to improve transition outcomes for youth and their families/caregivers through training, technical assistance, evaluation, and the development and dissemination of resources to transition stakeholders, including Title V programs. The Center will specifically be tasked with supporting a total of 11 HRSA-MCHB funded Transition for Youth with Autism (4 grants) and/or Epilepsy (7 grants) Demonstration Projects in meeting their program objectives of implementing and evaluating innovative, sustainable, and scalable strategies to support youth and their families/caregivers in successfully transitioning from child to adult serving systems. Information on the Transition Program and a list of grantees can be found on the Transition for Youth with Autism and/or Epilepsy (HRSA MCHB) webpage.

“Creating a comprehensive, quality system of care for young people with disabilities and complex health needs remains a leading challenge for health leaders and other stakeholders such as jurisdictional Title V programs, health care and hospital systems, educators, workforce and employment training programs, independent community living programs, and families,” said Terrance E. Moore, Chief Executive Officer of AMCHP. “This National Center is an opportunity to model collaboration and partnerships by bringing together those agencies with historically marginalized and underserved young people and their families/caregivers to advance successful cross-sector transition outcomes for all youth with disabilities such as autism and epilepsy.” [continue reading]

New Pulse Issue Available: From Partnering with Purpose to Partnering for Impact at AMCHP 2025

The August issue of our Pulse Newsletter is now available!

As we continue to reflect on AMCHP 2024 and gear up for AMCHP 2025, this issue is the perfect blend of content as we transition from partnering with purpose, to impact. It includes a message from our CEO, Terrance E. Moore, articles on attendee experiences at this year’s AMCHP Annual Conference, a feature from Denver Health Pediatrics at Denver Public Schools, as well as a photo album you can now access on our conference webpage!

Read the articles:

Do you want to receive our Pulse newsletter directly in your inbox? Subscribe to our email list!

New Agenda Updates Title V Federal-State Maternal & Child Health Partnership Meeting

AMCHP is partnering with the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) to convene the 2024 Title V Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Federal-State Partnership Meeting from October 20-23 at the Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.

Updated information regarding the Partnership Meeting agenda is now featured on our webpage. This information is intended to aid in decisions about who should attend the Title V MCH Federal-State Partnership Meeting and to let current registrants know what to expect. HRSA MCHB and AMCHP are pleased to be crafting this event based on feedback we have been hearing from states and partners via formal and informal communications. If you have any other suggestions about what you would like to see in the meeting, please email partnershipmeeting@amchp.org. We would love to have your feedback.

Register for the meeting, and visit our webpage for more information on event details, theme, location, food, and preliminary agenda!

Recent AMCHP Announcements

AMCHP Annual Conference

The AMCHP Annual Conference is one of the largest gatherings of maternal and child health (MCH) professionals in the United States. Every year, our conference aims to highlight MCH programs’ impact at all levels on women, children, and families and to provide participants with tools and resources to develop, enhance, and sustain vital MCH programs and services.

Save the dates to attend AMCHP 2025 in Washington, DC! Subscribe to our Annual Conference Newsletter to be the first to receive updates and information about AMCHP 2025.

The Call for Proposals for AMCHP 2025 is Open

Proposals for skills-building sessions, workshops, posters, and roundtables that support our 2025 theme, Partnering for Impact, are now being accepted for evaluation through September 27, under any of the 14 subject-focused tracks:

Adolescent and Young Adult Health
Children and Youth with Complex Health Care Needs and Disabilities
Epidemiology, Data, Assessment, and Evaluation
Family & Community Engagement & Partnership
Health Equity & Disability Justice
Housing, Nutrition, and Other Social Determinants of Health
Indigeneity and Health
Mental Health/Behavioral Health
Prenatal to Three Continuum
Policy & Advocacy
Sexual and Reproductive Health
Title V Program Administration
Workforce Development and Leadership
Youth Engagement & Partnership

Plan to share your work by the September 27 deadline! AMCHP staff estimates that it takes about 4-5 hours to put all the content pieces together and 15-20 minutes to fill out the submission forms. Submitters with completed proposals by September 27, will be notified of their sessions’ status by the end of November.

New this year — AMCHP is accepting video submissions in place of the written submission for workshops and skills-builder sessions. Please focus your 5-minute submission video on questions 4-13 of the session/proposal details page.

Start planning your sessions or poster proposal now! The deadline will not be extended.

Now available! Please watch this webinar for more information about the submission and review process and download the slides. A full audio transcript and Q&A are also available for download with the passcode KW@U=Cg7.

Visit our 2025 Annual Conference Session and Poster Proposals page to learn more.

The AMCHP 2025 Theme: Partnering for Impact

In 2024, AMCHP’s theme of Partnering with Purpose highlighted how essential meaningful and purposeful partnerships are for achieving our goals in maternal and child health (MCH). The theme of partnership resonated deeply and widely with our participants, leading us to revisit it in 2025 with the theme Partnering for Impact. This theme captures our collective commitment to making our world better – where people have equitable access, equitable outcomes, and the opportunity to thrive. This theme takes us a step further in our purposeful partnerships towards the “why” of partnership—we partner to make things happen.

Partnering for Impact places results in the spotlight. Our collective work together matters because of what we hope to accomplish together. We model partnering intentionally to change the status quo, disrupt harmful narratives, and close the gaps in MCH outcomes. We partner not just because it looks good on paper or because it feels good to work with like-minded people but because we want to impact our communities for the better. We are difference-makers. We are change-makers. We are partnering for impact.

AMCHP’s goal is to have at least 50% of accepted proposal submissions directly address the conference theme. Visit our conference page to explore our AMCHP 2025 learning objectives.

Opportunities & Funding

AMCHP Career Center: Connecting Talent with Opportunity

AMCHP lists the top jobs available in our industry. Access the AMCHP Career Center to search and apply for open positions or post your jobs and opportunities! Search for Jobs | Post a Job.

Deadline Approaching – Submit to the MCH Innovations Database by September 20

Submit to the MCH Innovations Database ahead of our Fall 2024 Review, which will begin on Friday, September 20, and include all the submissions received on or before this date. All submissions received on or after September 21 will be rolled into our Spring 2025 review cycle (date to be announced). All application materials, including submission forms for each practice or policy designation, are currently available on AMCHP’s Innovation Hub webpage. Check out this short overview video of the submission process to learn more.

The MCH Innovations Database is a searchable repository of “what’s working” in the field that includes practices and policies that are positively impacting MCH populations.  AMCHP strongly encourages community-based organizations to submit their practices and policies to the MCH Innovations Database, regardless of whether they have been evaluated by traditional methods.

AMCHP recognizes the validity of many forms of evidence, given that public health work is context-specific and happens in real life. We strongly believe in the power of community-defined evidence and seek to promote its use in the MCH field to center and highlight the expertise and perspectives of those with lived experience. Learn more about how AMCHP thinks about evidence and view an example of community-defined evidence. 

How to Submit a Practice? Access the practice submission forms on our webpage and learn more about how you can submit your practice for review! All submissions must be sent to evidence@amchp.org by September 20 to be considered for Fall review, but are still accepted on a rolling basis. 

Not sure which designation to submit to? Check out our Minimum Criteria Checklist  to figure out which designation is right for your practice.

How to Submit a Policy? Access the policy submission forms on our webpage and learn more about how you can submit your policy for review! All submissions should be sent to evidence@amchp.org by September 20 to be considered for Fall review, but are still accepted on a rolling basis.

Refer a Practice or Policy: Don’t have anything to submit but know of one that would be a great fit for the MCH Innovations Database? Refer a practice/policy to the database on our website, and we’ll reach out to them.

If you would like assistance with which practice designation or policy track to submit to or have any questions, please email us at evidence@amchp.org, and we will be happy to help you! 

AMCHP Events & Webinars

Upcoming Innovation Hub Learning Community Series Webinar – “Say More About That”: Qualitative Research and Interviewing Considerations

Join us for the third Innovation Hub Learning Community (IHLC) webinar of the year on September 26 from 3-4 PM ET! The Innovation Hub Learning Community (IHLC) offers programmatic support to all practices in the MCH Innovations Database through one-on-one tailored coaching, didactic webinars, and peer-sharing opportunities. Throughout 2024, AMCHP is hosting four webinars on topics related to programmatic best practices that all MCH professionals and advocates are welcome to attend.  

Our next session, “Say More About That”: Qualitative Research and Interviewing Considerations will explore ways qualitative interviewing can add a dimension to your evaluation practices, and how to incorporate it into your evaluation plans. 

Upcoming Webinar – ***Prioritizing Self-care While in a Leadership Role*, hosted by AMCHP’s Family LEAD Committee**

Join AMCHP’s Family LEAD Committee for a six-session series, Highlighting Family Leadership within Title V, that will feature a different topic for each discussion.

Our upcoming session, Prioritizing Self-care While in a Leadership Role, will be held on October 3 from 3-4 PM ET. In the demanding roles of family leaders, balancing self-care with professional responsibilities can seem impossible, yet it is crucial to prevent burnout and vicarious trauma. Join us for a discussion on how to keep your “bucket” full by developing self-awareness skills and equipping yourself with tools to maintain mental, emotional, and physical well-being amidst the challenges of working with families, policies, and advocacy.

Learn more and register for this or all the webinar sessions!

Legislation & Policy

Explore our Maternal & Child Health Bill Tracker for more information about pending federal legislation to improve maternal health. Also, download AMCHP’s 2024 Federal Policy Agenda outlining where we are focusing our advocacy work this year.

Subscribe to AMCHP’s Legislative Alerts and Policy Digest to stay up to date with the latest policy information.

AMCHP Policy and Partnerships Town Halls

Thank you to those of you who joined us for our last AMCHP Policy and Partnerships Town Hall! You can find the full recordings of past Town Halls on our Government Affairs webpage.

Town Halls occur on the second Thursday of every month from 2-3 PM ET, including our next edition on October 10. We invite you to register for all future Town Halls at this registration link.

Partner Events & Webinars

Webinar on Health Equity in Emergency Preparedness and Response

When preparing and responding to emergencies, it is crucial to embed health equity from the start to ensure that all people have equal access to life-saving information, services, and programs. Emergencies, such as a natural disaster or a pandemic, can have devastating impacts on whole communities. People in racial and ethnic minority communities, people with disabilities, people living in geographically isolated areas, and other groups often face systemic barriers and health disparities that are exacerbated during an emergency.

Join our partners at the  CDC’s Office of Health Equity (OHE)  on October 23, 3-4:30 PM ET to learn about the importance of health equity in emergency response and preparedness. OHE and CDC’s Office of Readiness and Response will present on its emergency response work, including the establishment of the Chief Health Equity Officer (CHEO) unit in CDC emergency responses. Additional presenters include subject matter experts from Choose Healthy Life, Southern Plains Tribal Health Board, and National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NASDDDS). 

2024 National WIC Association Nutrition Education and Breastfeeding Promotion Conference

The National WIC Association (NWA) is hosting its Annual Nutrition Education and Breastfeeding Promotion Conference in Baltimore, Maryland at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront on November 19-21. This year’s theme, Nourishing Generations – The Next 50 Years of WIC, reflects NWA’s commitment to advancing WIC’s mission and supporting families nationwide for the next 50 years! This conference is a popular event for nutrition and lactation professionals in the U.S., drawing over 1,200 participants from the USDA, state and local WIC agencies, and vendors serving the WIC community.

 Learn more about the conference and register.

Publications & Resources

New Research Report on the Maternal and Child Health Workforce: A Snapshot of Current and Future Needs from Public Health WINS 2021

MCH professionals, essential to delivering services such as those related to children with special health care needs and family planning, face critical staffing shortages at state and local health departments, necessitating approximately 6,500 additional full-time equivalents.

To address this, AMCHP, alongside the Maternal and Child Health Bureau and the National MCH Workforce Development Center, collaborated with the de Beaumont Foundation to develop the MCH Module for the 2021 Public Health Workforce Interests and Needs Survey (PH WINS). This module gathers data on the specific needs and competencies of the MCH workforce, providing valuable insights to help enhance support and professional development for those working in governmental public health settings.

Read and share this new research report, with AMCHP’s Caroline Stampfel, Chief Strategy & Program Officer featured as an author, that summarizes and examines data collected from the first-ever MCH module and outlines key considerations for using these data to support the governmental MCH public health workforce in state and local health departments.

New Report Shows Progress in Maternal Health Care Through Safer Childbirth Cities Initiative

Black Mamas Matter Alliance, Inc. (BMMA) published a new report, Supporting Communities, Transforming Maternal Health: A Spotlight on the Safer Childbirth Cities Initiative, highlighting the successes of grantees and experiences of birthing people impacted by the Safer Childbirth Cities Initiative (SCC). SCC was supported by Merck for Mothers, along with several national and local philanthropic partners including AMCHP.

This new report offers practical examples from SCC to others in the field who are implementing community-led solutions while calling for more support for maternal health initiatives at the local level. Read the news release from Merck for Mothers, and access the full report.

New CDC Interim Guidance for Evaluation and Management of Infants Born to Pregnant People with Confirmed or Probable Oropouche Virus Disease

On August 27, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published interim guidance for evaluating and managing infants born to pregnant people with confirmed or probable Oropouche Virus Disease (Oropouche).

Key takeaways include:

Data on congenital Oropouche virus disease is currently limited.
Findings among people in Brazil with Oropouche during pregnancy have included stillbirth and severe microcephaly.
Infants born to people with confirmed or probable Oropouche during pregnancy should receive a comprehensive evaluation by a healthcare provider at birth and at each well-child visit.
Infants and children with congenital anomalies might benefit from multidisciplinary care.

Visit the CDC webpage to read the full guidance.