These volunteer leaders were elected by
you to care for AMCHP today and guide it into the future. Here they share
information about themselves to give you a new MCH connection and a better
understanding of the board members' roles, or simply to pique your interest in
the work of your peers.
This month, we have the privilege of
introducing you to board members Shirley Payne and Gina Pola-Money, who were elected
in 2016 to serve on the AMCHP Board of Directors.
Shirley Payne, MPH, has been an AMCHP member
since 2013, serving in multiple volunteer capacities including as an active
participant in the AMCHP Leadership Institute for CYSHCN Directors as well as
the New Director Mentor Program. She joined the Board of Directors as the Region
V Director representing Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and
Wisconsin.
Shirley earned a
Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Arts in African-American and
African Diaspora Studies from Indiana University in 2007, and later earned her
Master of Public Health degree from the Indiana University School of Medicine,
with concentrations in epidemiology and behavioral health science. She is
pursuing her doctoral degree in Health Behavior from the Indiana University
School of Public Health.
Shirley serves with
the Division of Children’s Special Heath Care Services (CSHCS) within the Indiana
Department of Health, where her primary responsibility is to administer
Indiana’s CSHCS program, which is a supplemental coverage program that helps
families of children with serious, chronic medical conditions pay for treatment
related to their child’s condition. She also serves as the state’s Title V
Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN) director and is
responsible for managing the CYSHCN portion of the Title V Block Grant.
Shirley has been
dedicated to serving the special needs population for over seven years. Prior
to working with the state, she worked as a team leader with St. Vincent New
Hope (now New Hope of Indiana) in Indianapolis, Ind., and was instrumental in
direct care coordination for individuals with intellectual and developmental
disabilities on state Medicaid waivers. This experience gave her the desire to
focus her career on maternal and child health, in particular working on behalf
of the special needs population.
“I have an undeniable
passion for helping others,” Shirely said. “I have found that one of my
greatest strengths is the ability to help those who cannot help themselves,
need someone to advocate on their behalf, or motivate them in order to help
themselves. Serving on the board allows me to do just that.”
“As a leader, I
recognize that I am called to look beyond my own interests and needs to ensure
a collective voice is represented for the entire maternal and child health
population,” she adds. “I feel a sense of responsibility to ensure this happens
for Region V.”
Gina Pola-Money, A.S., Social Sciences, has been an active AMCHP member since 2001. She joined the Board
of Directors this year as a family representative. 
Gina has over 29 years of experience
navigating the health care system for her children with special health care
needs, including dealing with medically complex, hospice and mental health
issues. She is director of Utah Family Voices Family to Family Health
Information Center, which provides supports for family needs as well as information
to families and professionals about resources and health care financing. Gina
is also a member of the family faculty of the Utah Regional LEND program,
helping to bring the family voice to leadership education for professionals and
gaining the perspective of her professional partners.
"It is my greatest hope that I can
give some of my passion and commitment to the organization that has done so
much to help families of children and youth with special health care needs,
like mine,” Gina says.
Gina has also been actively involved
with medical home and quality improvement initiatives, which include
coordinating parent partner activities, family centered care and parent
professional partnerships. She shares that she has been fortunate to benefit
from the ongoing mentorship, collaboration and technical assistance of Family
Voices and Title V.
We thank and honor these two
professionals for giving their time and expertise to AMCHP. Please take a
moment to visit the AMCHP board
page at for more details and to see how you
can reach Shirley Payne and Gina Pola-Money.