A note about this month’s AMCHP Pulse from Michael Fraser, PhD, Chief Executive Officer
This issue of AMCHP Pulse focuses on state and local collaboration, a topic that is of special interest to me. Having started my public health career at the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) I was exposed to local public health at the city and county level and spent several years working to better understand and describe local and state public health infrastructure nationwide. I left NACCHO to work at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and was exposed to federal public health agencies and the way that these large agencies work with both states and local health departments. My current work with state health departments and their MCH and CYSHCN programs at AMCHP nicely compliments my journey across the various levels of governmental public health. Are there differences between these three levels of public health? Certainly. But having had a foot in these three important parts of public health I can honestly say I believe there are many more similarities than differences among them.
This month’s “From the CEO” and “From the President” feature state and local collaboration in a unique manner. Instead of the regular columns from AMCHP’s President Phyllis Sloyer and myself we decided to engage in conversations with CityMatCH, our urban MCH partner, about the topic. The themes of trust, collaboration, shared purpose and shared vision, and shared frustration with lack of resources, need for accountability, and more energy in building and connecting MCH systems at all levels of government are common themes. I hope you enjoy reading these conversations as much as we enjoyed having them. Let us know what you think!
From the Presidents
MCH Local and State Partnerships
By Phyllis Sloyer, President, AMCHP and
Kimberlee Wyche-Etheridge, MD, MPH
Chair, CityMatCH Board of Directors
This month’s Pulse features the topic of state and local collaboration. We asked the leaders of AMCHP and CityMatCH to share their thoughts on a few questions related to partnership and collaboration between state and local MCH programs. [read more]
From the CEOs
State and Local Collaboration
By Mike R. Fraser, PhD and
Patrick Simpson, MPH, Executive Director, CityMatCH
For almost 20 years, CityMatCH has supported urban maternal and child health programs nationwide. CityMatCH members are MCH directors and other public leaders in health departments serving jurisdictions with populations of 100,000 or more residents. I caught up with Patrick Simpson, MPH, CityMatCH’s Executive Director in Omaha, Nebraska, where CityMatCH is headquartered. [read more]
Features
Stormy Weather: Facing the Reality of State and Local Cuts to MCH Program Budgets
By Michelle Alletto, MPP
Program Manager, Public Policy & Government Affairs, AMCHP
Chad J. Abresch, M.Ed
Program and Policy Manager, CityMatCH
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 48 states are facing fiscal stress in their fiscal year 2010 budgets with initial estimates of these shortfalls totaling $166 billion. Since the beginning of the current recession, states have begun making cuts and felt increased pressure as the economy has continued to weaken. Although fiscal relief from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has minimized the impact of some of these cuts, many states still face severe fiscal challenges. [read more]
When Them Is Us and Us Is Them: Some Unique Features of State/Local Collaboration in Four Centralized States
By Michael Fraser, PhD
If you’ve seen one health department you’ve seen one health department. I have heard this statement from many local, state, and federal public health leaders over the years. And while there is a great deal of diversity across the country in terms of state and local public health there are also many similarities between public health agencies. [read more]
Thoughts on Working at the Local and State Level
By Larry D. Jones, MPH
Health Director
Independence Health Department
Independence, Missouri
We asked Larry to answer some questions about his experience working at the state and then at the local level. [read more]
Public Health Accreditation and MCH Programs: A Natural Partnership for Health Improvement
By Kaye Bender, PhD, RN, FAAN
President and CEO, PHAB
The Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) was established in 2007 to establish a national voluntary public health accreditation program for state, local and tribal health departments. The idea came about as a result of a previous study, Exploring Accreditation, in which it was determined that it is both desirable and feasible to embark on this effort. [read more]
Member to Member
Member states were asked the following question:
How are you involving local health departments in your state needs assessment? [read more]