MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH/

CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES CONCENTRATION

GUIDELINES

Introduction

The Maternal and Child Health/Children, Youth and Families (MCH/CYF) concentration is designed for those who aspire to future leadership in the promotion of maternal and child health. It recognizes that contributions to MCH can be in research, policy development, advocacy, education, practice and in program planning and management. Leadership in MCH requires mastery of the knowledge of the special health care needs of MCH populations, analysis of the issues, and the programs addressing these needsworldwide. The curriculum is guided by the competencies in MCH. “Maternal and Child Health Competencies, Version 3.0” [ The competencies can be grouped into those involving the scientific basis of MCH, methodological and analytic skills, management and communication skills, and policy and advocacy skills. In addition, leaders in MCH should be aware of the emerging areas in public health practice identified in the 2003 Institute of Medicine report on the Future of the Public’s Health in the 21st century. These include informatics, genomics, communication, cultural competence, community-based participatory research, policy and law, and ethics.

The MCH/CYF concentration is open to all students in the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. Please visit the MCH/CYF concentration website for more information and updates: or contact either: Trish Lavoie, 617 432 0964; ,or

Caroline Huntington, 617 432 3759, .

Requirements

Students should indicate their interest in the MCH/CYF concentration by checking the appropriate space on the application to HSPH. AllMCH/CYF concentrators are required to take SBS 246, Issues in MCH Programs and Policies for ordinal credit. In addition, allconcentrators must enroll in SBS 360, MCH/CYF Seminar, for the duration of their program.

MS2 (80 credit), MPH (65 credit) and Dual degree MPH (65 credits)students must take a total of 10 ordinal credits in MCH/CYF (including SBS 246).

MPH (45 credit) and MS1 degree students must take a total of 7.5 ordinal credits(including SBS 246).

Doctor of Science students are encouraged to major – or – at the least, must minor in MCH/CYF (including SBS 246). In addition, their thesis should address an MCH/CYF topic

Doctor of Public Health students must fulfill a minimum of 10 ordinal credits in MCH/CYF courses (including SBS 246). In addition the required 100+ page thesis must have an MCH focus.

For doctoral students receiving funding from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau training grant, there are additional requirements (see MCH Training Grant page 5).

Upon completion of requirements for a degree program, students will be required to fill out an MCH/CYF Concentration Completion Form and provide the concentration administrator with an unofficial transcript.

COURSES

Scientific Basis of MCH

MCMCH Courses
SBS 246, Issues in MCH Programs and Policies
SBS 208, Adolescent Health
SBS 212, Developmental Disabilities I: Evaluation, Assessment and Systems
SBS 214, Developmental Disabilities II: Value, Policy and Change
SBS 219 High-Risk Behavior: Epidemiology and Prevention Strategies
SBS 220, Society and Its Effects on Child Health
SBS 222, Social Services for Children, Adolescents and Families
SBS 299,Mobilizing the Science of Early Childhood Development to Drive Innovation in Policy and Practice
SBS 505, Quality Improvement and Child Health (offered 2017)
EPI 504, Epidemiology of Disorders and Diseases of Childhood and Young Adulthood (offered Spring 2015 and every other year)
EPI 269, Epidemiologic Research in Obstetrics and Gynecology
GHP 231, Sexual and Reproductive Health
Other Courses
SBS 506 Disease Distribution Theory A
SBS 507 Disease Distribution Theory B
Methodological/Analytic Skills
Courses
SBS 281, Methods for Research on Social and Behavioral Dimensions
of Public Health
SBS 265, Program Planning: Design and Evaluation
SBS 288, Qualitative Research Methods in Public Health
ID 236, Social Epidemiology
SBS 231, Community Intervention Research Methods
GHP 504, Applied Qualitative Methods for International Health
SBS 263, Multilevel StatisticalMethods: Concept and Application
SBS 245, Social and Behavioral Research Methods
SBS 250, Research on Social and Behavioral Health
GHP 220, Introduction to Demographic Methods
ID 214, Nutritional Epidemiology
GHP 562 Program Monitoring and Evaluation Methods
(restricted to MPH-GH students)
Program Implementation and Management Courses
Other Courses (selected)
SBS 550, Program Evaluation
SBS 501, Community-Based Participatory Research
ID 238, Programs and Principles of Public Health Nutrition
HPM 206, Economic Analysis
HPM 545, Health Care Issues: Public vs Market Resolutions
HPM 210,United States Health Policy
HPM 211,The Health Care Safety Net and Vulnerable Populations
MLD 829, Entrepreneurial Finance I
MLD 801, Strategic Management of Nonprofit and Nongovernmental Organizations

Emerging Areas in Public Health Education

Communication:
SBS 509, Health Communication in the 21st Century
Cultural Competence:
SBS 296, Leadership in Minority Health Policy
SBS 298, Issues in Minority Health Policy
SBS 201, Society and Health
SBS 207, Race, Ethnicity and Health: Perspectives from the Social and Behavioral Sciences
SBS 254, Social Disparities, Stress and Health
SBS 515, Health Literacy: Measuring Accessibility of Health Information
SBS 516, Measures of the Health Literacy Environment
Sequence in Women, Gender and Health Concentration:
WGH 250, Embodying Gender: Public Health, Biology, and the
Body Politic
WGH 207, Advanced Topics in Women, Gender and Health
WGH 210, Women, Gender and Health: Critical Issues in Mental Health
(Offered 2016)
WGH 211, Women, Gender and Health: Introductory Perspectives
WGH 220, Sexuality and Public Health
Community-based Participatory Research:
SBS 231, Community Intervention Research Methods
Policy and Law:
HPM 545, Health Care Issues: Public vs Market Resolutions
GHP 553 Human Rights Dilemmas in Child Protection
Ethics:
ID 250, Ethical Basis of the Practice of Public Health
ID 292, Justice and Resource Allocation
ID 513, Ethics and Health Disparities
GHP 214, Health, Human Rights and the International System
Leadership Skills:
HPM 231, Competitive Strategy
HPM 247,Political Analysis for Health Policy
SBS 296, Leadership in Minority Health Policy
SBS 298, Issues in Minority Health Policy
SBS 360, MCH/CYF Seminar
GHP 547, Field Experience in Maternal Health
HPM 245, Public Health Leadership Skills
HPM 278, Skills and Methods of Health Care Negotiation and
Conflict Resolution

Additional Harvard Courses Approved for MCH/CYF Credit

Harvard School of Public Health
SBS 504, Substance Abuse and Public Health
ID 240, Principles of Injury Control
ID 535, Managing Community Health Centers (Not offered 2015-16)
ID217, Nutritional Problems of Less-Developed Countries.
HPM 520, Community Organizing for Health
NUT 218, Global Nutrition (summer)
Kennedy School of Government
SUP 211, Institutional and Community-Based Strategies to Support Children and Strengthen Families
SUP 201, Poverty and Social Policy also offered at Law School
as HLS 2533
SUP 107MA, Qualitative Methods of Policy Research
IGA 305, Children, Youth and International Human Rights
MLD 401M-A, Financial Management in Public and Nonprofit Organizations
MLD 401M-B, Financial Management in Public and Nonprofit Organizations
MLD 801, Strategic Management of Nonprofit and Non-Governmental Organizations
Harvard Graduate School of Education
H-137 Emotion in Development and Learning: Usable Knowledge, Variability, and Context
H-392, Childhood Trauma: Dynamics, Interventions and Cross-Cultural Perspectives
H-331, Risk and Resilience in Social Contexts from Birth to YoungAdulthood: Strategies of Prevention and Intervention
H236, Adolescent Development
H-250, Developmental Psychology: Psychology of Early Childhood
A-011B, Learning from Practice: Evaluation and Improvement Science

Additional Comments:

Doctoral Students

Doctor of Science students in the MCH/CYF concentration must minor in MCH/CYF.

In addition, their thesis should address an MCH/CYF topic.

Doctor of Public Health students in the MCH/CYF concentration must acquire a minimum of 10 ordinal credits in MCH/CYF and the required 100+page thesis must address an MCH/CYF topic.

MPH Students

MPH/HSB students in the MCH/CYF Concentration cannot count ID 264 as MCH/CYF credit, as this course is required for the MPH/HSB practicum.

MPH/GH students in the MCH Concentration cannot count GHP530 as MCH/CYF credit, as this course is required for the MPH/GH practicum.

The practicum for all MPH students in the MCH/CYF concentration must deal with an MCH population or agency.

MCH Training Grant

The Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences is fortunate to have a Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health in Education, Science and Practice training grant funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau of the Health Resources and Services Agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. This training grant supports the training of public health professionals for leadership roles in Maternal and Child Health, and, more specifically, for activities consistent with the Bureau’s programs.

The grant provides tuition support.

Other MCHB funding also includes two partial scholarships for the study of MCH epidemiology.

Those eligible for support must be US citizens or permanent residents, and they must fulfill the requirements at the leastfor an MCH/CYF minor orconcentration for their degree program. In addition, training grant recipients must enroll in SBS 360 MCH/CYF Seminar for the duration of their program.

An open tuition application procedure is planned for the spring of each year, with decisions for funding being made by the MCH/CYF faculty. As a recipient of support from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau it is very important that you acknowledge the support on your publications. Preferred wording to acknowledge the support is: “This project is/was supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant T76MC00001and entitled Training Grant in Maternal and Child Health”.

In addition, limited funds are available from the Martha May Eliot endowment fund. Finally, students admitted to Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health may also be eligible for general school support and named fellowship.

1September 29, 2015