Zika Corner
Zika Care Connect
The Zika Care Connect website contains information to help pregnant women and families find the appropriate healthcare professional and resources that can address their specific needs. The website includes:
· Healthcare Professional Network, a searchable database of health care specialists who provide care for pregnant women and infants affected by Zika
· HelpLine, a call line staffed from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. ET by professionals who can answer questions and provide referrals to health care professionals in the Zika Care Connect Network
· Downloadable materials for patients, families and health care professionals
· Frequently Asked Questions
Update on Zika Virus — Associated Birth Defects and Evaluation of all U.S. Infants with Congenital Zika Virus Exposure — U.S. Zika Pregnancy Registry, 2016
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a Vital Signs report that updates estimates of the proportion of fetuses and infants with birth defects among pregnant women infected with Zika. This report underscores the importance of protecting pregnant women from Zika virus infection and early care for affected babies.
Enhanced Epilepsy Surveillance and Awareness Encouraged in the Age of Zika
A commentary co-authored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that recent studies show that seizures and epilepsy are being reported in some infants with congenital Zika virus infection. The effects Zika virus can have on a developing brain are similar to those of other congenital central nervous system infections associated with epilepsy.
General & Maternal Child Health
Applying CDC's Guideline for Prescribing Opioids
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention launched an online training series regarding the recommendations in the clinical setting through interactive patient scenarios, videos, knowledge checks, tips and resources. In response to rising concerns about opioid prescriptions and abuse, the CDC created the 2016 Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain and associated training. The first training, Addressing the Opioid Epidemic: Recommendations from CDC, is available. Future topics include communicating with patients, treating chronic pain without opioids, and prescribing decision making.
Health Systems Transformation in MCH
State Perspectives on Children's Coverage in the Changing Health Policy Landscape
The National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP) outlined key principles concerning children's coverage that policymakers should consider as health decisions are deliberated at the national level. To ensure kids' coverage remains a priority, NASHP convened a group of Children's Health Insurance Program and Medicaid officials to discuss key issues.
Child and Adolescent Health
National Profile of Title V CYSHCN Programs
AMCHP is pleased to release the National Title V Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs Program Profile. In 2015-16, with support from the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health, AMCHP fielded a Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN) Program Profile survey to gain insight into Title V CYSHCN programs across the U.S. This report highlights results from the survey and provides insight into Title V CYSHCN program structure and strengths, roles in systems of care, CYSHCN program partnerships, financing of care for CYSHCN populations and emerging issues for CYSHCN programs. For more information, visit AMCHP's CYSHCN webpage.
Latest Research in Youth Violence and Children's Mental Health
The National Resource Center for Mental Health Promotion and Youth Violence Prevention highlighted Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initiatives that work to keep America safe and healthy, the mental health effects on adolescents as they transition to high school, the early childhood predictors of youth violence in low-income male adolescents, and more.
Parents' Attitudes Towards Food Marketing
The University of Connecticut Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity published a report that highlights parents' views about food marketing to children, food self-industry regulation, and their support for policies to help encourage healthy eating for their children.
State ESSA Plans to Support Student Health and Wellness
The Healthy Schools Campaign published a report that focuses on supporting advocates interested in working with state-level policymakers to develop state Every Student Succeeds Act plans. It provides practical resources and emphasizes key areas with the greatest potential impact on student health.
Are High School Students with Disabilities Prepared for Life After School?
The Department of Education published a report that explores the transition experiences of students with disabilities after high school. Volume one compares their experiences to those of their typically developing peers. Volume two compares students across disability categories.
Caring for Children with Cleft Lip/Palate
The American Academy of Pediatrics released a report that provides background on cleft lip and palate. The report recognizes the important role of the primary care pediatrician in making a timely diagnosis, providing ongoing health care maintenance, functioning as an advocate for the patient and acting as liaison between the family and the craniofacial/cleft team.
Diabetes Increasing in Youths
Research from the National Institutes of Health found a rise in the rate in the rate of new cases of diabetes in youths under the age of 20. Understanding why certain youths are more at risk might inform future prevention and treatment efforts.
Legislation & Policy in MCH
Closure of Hospital Obstetric Services Disproportionately Affects Less-Populated Rural Counties
A project by the University of Minnesota Rural Health Center has resulted in two policy briefs. The first publication examines the closure of hospital-based obstetric services in rural areas from 2004 to 2014 from a national perspective. The second brief documents state-level variability on the same topic.
Women's & Infant Health
Postpartum Contraception Among Teens
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Trends in Repeat Births and Use of Postpartum Contraception Among Teens — United States, 2004-2015. The report found geographic differences in trends regarding repeat teen births and the use of contraception.