TY - JOUR
T1 - The MCH Navigator
T2 - Tools for MCH Workforce Development and Lifelong Learning
AU - Grason, Holly
AU - Huebner, Colleen
AU - Crawford, Alyssa Kim
AU - Ruderman, Marjory
AU - Taylor, Cathy R.
AU - Kavanagh, Laura
AU - Farel, Anita
AU - Wightkin, Joan
AU - Long-White, Deneen
AU - Ramirez, Shokufeh M.
AU - Preskitt, Julie
AU - Morrissette, Meredith
AU - Handler, Arden
N1 - Funding Information:
Historically, MCH workforce training has occurred through programs funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) Special Projects of Regional and National Significance (SPRANS) grants to degree-granting graduate training programs and clinical training programs. These grants focused on discipline-specific areas such as nutrition, interdisciplinary clinical programs such as adolescent health, and population health training in Schools of Public Health. In addition, MCHB has funded stand-alone training programs such as the Enhanced Analytic Skills Projects conducted with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and a variety of MCH certificate programs, workshops, and webinars. While these efforts have produced a strong and capable workforce, they are limited in their reach and their ability to meet the ongoing needs of the entire MCH workforce, including a majority of individuals who enter new job roles with little training in public health [].
Publisher Copyright:
© 2014, Springer Science+Business Media New York.
PY - 2014/2
Y1 - 2014/2
N2 - Maternal and child health (MCH) leadership requires an understanding of MCH populations and systems as well as continuous pursuit of new knowledge and skills. This paper describes the development, structure, and implementation of the MCH Navigator, a web-based portal for ongoing education and training for a diverse MCH workforce. Early development of the portal focused on organizing high quality, free, web-based learning opportunities that support established learning competencies without duplicating existing resources. An academic-practice workgroup developed a conceptual model based on the MCH Leadership Competencies, the Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals, and a structured review of MCH job responsibilities. The workgroup used a multi-step process to cull the hundreds of relevant, but widely scattered, trainings and select those most valuable for the primary target audiences of state and local MCH professionals and programs. The MCH Navigator now features 248 learning opportunities, with additional tools to support their use. Formative assessment findings indicate that the portal is widely used and valued by its primary audiences, and promotes both an individual’s professional development and an organizational culture of continuous learning. Professionals in practice and academic settings are using the MCH Navigator for orientation of new staff and advisors, “just in time” training for specific job functions, creating individualized professional development plans, and supplementing course content. To achieve its intended impact and ensure the timeliness and quality of the Navigator’s content and functions, the MCH Navigator will need to be sustained through ongoing partnership with state and local MCH professionals and the MCH academic community.
AB - Maternal and child health (MCH) leadership requires an understanding of MCH populations and systems as well as continuous pursuit of new knowledge and skills. This paper describes the development, structure, and implementation of the MCH Navigator, a web-based portal for ongoing education and training for a diverse MCH workforce. Early development of the portal focused on organizing high quality, free, web-based learning opportunities that support established learning competencies without duplicating existing resources. An academic-practice workgroup developed a conceptual model based on the MCH Leadership Competencies, the Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals, and a structured review of MCH job responsibilities. The workgroup used a multi-step process to cull the hundreds of relevant, but widely scattered, trainings and select those most valuable for the primary target audiences of state and local MCH professionals and programs. The MCH Navigator now features 248 learning opportunities, with additional tools to support their use. Formative assessment findings indicate that the portal is widely used and valued by its primary audiences, and promotes both an individual’s professional development and an organizational culture of continuous learning. Professionals in practice and academic settings are using the MCH Navigator for orientation of new staff and advisors, “just in time” training for specific job functions, creating individualized professional development plans, and supplementing course content. To achieve its intended impact and ensure the timeliness and quality of the Navigator’s content and functions, the MCH Navigator will need to be sustained through ongoing partnership with state and local MCH professionals and the MCH academic community.
KW - Continuing education
KW - Education
KW - Leadership
KW - Public Health Professional
KW - Title V programs
KW - Workforce
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84939895545&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84939895545&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s10995-014-1572-2
DO - 10.1007/s10995-014-1572-2
M3 - Article
C2 - 25078479
AN - SCOPUS:84939895545
SN - 1092-7875
VL - 19
SP - 324
EP - 334
JO - Maternal and child health journal
JF - Maternal and child health journal
IS - 2
ER -