Pulse is AMCHP’s bi-monthly online magazine. Each issue focuses on a different topic and is shared with the entire AMCHP family, including members, partners, and others interested in MCH issues. Never miss our updates! Sign up for our newsletters to receive the latest in maternal and child health news and AMCHP publications straight to your inbox. Subscribe now
How Region VIII Is “Figuring Out the Dance” of Youth-Adult Partnerships
Iliana White Senior Program Manager, Adolescent Health AMCHP Teaching each other how to dance. Coming up with a creative handshake. Embracing a moment of silence followed by a spiritual greeting. These were just a few of the activities that took place at the...
Connecting Communities: Using Social Media as a Mechanism to Address Barriers to Health Equity
States are urgently responding to the widening gaps in health equity across socioeconomic, racial, and geographically diverse groups. In an age where online connectivity is at its highest, health departments and community organizations alike have turned to social...
From the President
MCH Can Better Engage Teens and Young Adults with Autism or Developmental Disabilities Susan Chacon President of the Board Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs Our nation is experiencing an alarming decrease in resources for families of young...
A View from Washington, Family Separations as an MCH Issue
Amy Haddad Director of Policy and Government Affairs Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs In early June, many of us were shocked to learn that the Trump administration's new "zero tolerance" immigration policy resulted in the separation of children from...
Behind the Scenes: Working to Pass Federal Maternal Mortality Legislation
Alyson Northrup Government Affairs Specialist Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs A U.S. Senate committee recently advanced legislation on an issue of increasing national attention that maternal and child health (MCH) professionals are tackling...
Hope with Help
Melissa LaBrie New Hampshire My name is Melissa, and I am 47 years old. I am diagnosed with bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder, and I am an addict in recovery. Starting at the age of 12, I was sexually abused for several...
Reflections from the Summit: Maternal Mortality
In June the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration brought experts from around the country and the world to Washington for the three-day Maternal Mortality Summit: Promising Global Practices to Improve Maternal Health Outcomes. Here are thoughts from two...
Emerging Sources of Lead Exposure for MCH Populations
Kate Taft, MPH Associate Director, Child and Adolescent Health Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs Childhood lead poisoning is considered the most preventable environmental disease among young children, yet at least 4 million households have children...
Perspectives on the Prematurity Prevention Summit: Building a Birth Equity Movement
A Q&A with Wanda D. Barfield, MD, MPH, FAAP – Director of CDC's Division of Reproductive Health On May 21 to 22, the March of Dimes convened a Prematurity Prevention Summit that focused on building a birth equity movement. The summit brought together thought...
CEO’s Challenge to MCH Leaders
To Make Progress on Health Equity, Demand that Non-Health Leaders Come to the Table Lori Freeman Former CEO, AMCHP This issue of Pulse themed around health equity is always timely and important. Yet, it's frustrating that, after spending close to 30 years hearing...
Data and Trends
Cheryl Clark, DrPH, RHIA Associate Director, Epidemiology and Evaluation AMCHP A published analysis highlighted a "substantial" decrease in Years of Life Lost (YLL) or deaths due to premature mortality among the black population from between 1990 and 2014. However,...
From the President
Susan Chacon President of the Board AMCHP I recently attended a training on providing quality, equitable health care for the LGBTQ community with a focus on reducing health disparities, including access to health care and health insurance; physical health and...
A View from Washington: A Push is on to Study the Health Impact of Gun Violence
Amy Haddad Director of Policy and Government Affairs AMCHP I've been searching for a good definition to describe social justice in a health context that connects the concept to the issue of gun violence as a public health issue and came across Jennifer Prah Ruger's...
Innovation Station: A Place to Share & Find Evidence-Based MCH Practices
Innovation Station is AMCHP's collection of resources to support the implementation of evidence-based practices. One of Innovation Station's most popular resources is its online database of cutting-edge, emerging, promising, and best practices in maternal and child...
New Measurement Framework and Indicator Set for Monitoring SDOH
Kay Johnson President, Johnson Group Consulting, Inc. The Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Learning Network was one of six strategic areas in the national phase of the Infant Mortality Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Network (IM CoIIN), aiming to build...
