HRSA Funding Opportunities

Pediatric Mental Health Care Access Program

Applications due: June 22

The purpose of this program is to promote behavioral health integration into pediatric primary care by supporting the planning and development of statewide, regional or tribal pediatric mental health care tele-consult access programs. These networks of pediatric mental health care teams will provide tele-consultation, training, technical assistance, and care coordination support for pediatric PCPs to diagnose, treat, and refer children with behavioral health conditions.

behavioral health pediatric mental health

Healthy Start Initiative – Enhanced

Applications due: July 17

The purpose of HSE is to improve health outcomes before, during, and after pregnancy and reduce the well-documented racial/ethnic differences in rates of infant death and adverse perinatal outcomes. HSE is intended to support projects in diverse communities and populations experiencing the greatest disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes.

maternal health health disparities infant health

Institute for Home Visiting Workforce Development and Jackie Walorski Center for Evidence-Based Case Management

Applications due: July 14

The purpose of the Institute is to provide support for home visiting programs to expand, support, and retain a diverse and qualified workforce. It will do so by assessing workforce trends, researching effective workforce support practices, and providing technical assistance on such practices. It will support, within the Institute, the establishment and operation of the Jackie Walorski Center for Evidence-Based Case Management, which will identify, evaluate, and disseminate evidence-based case management best practices within the home visiting context. The goals are to improve the quality of MIECHV services, support home visitor professional development and well-being, and reduce the costs and disruption associated with frequent staff turnover and re-training.

home visiting workforce development MIECHV

Maternal and Child Health Services

Applications due: July 31

The purpose of the Title V MCH Services Block Grant program is to enable each state to:

• Assure mothers and children access to quality MCH services, especially for those with low incomes or limited availability of care
• Reduce infant mortality
• Provide access to prenatal, delivery, and postnatal care to women (especially low-income and at-risk pregnant women)
• Increase the number of low-income children who receive regular health assessments and follow-up diagnostic and treatment services
• Provide access to preventive and primary care services for low-income children as well as rehabilitation services for CSHCN
• Implement family-centered, community-based, systems of coordinated care for CSHCN
• Provide toll-free hotlines and assistance with applying for services to pregnant women with infants and children who are eligible for Medicaid

infant mortality maternal health child health CSHCN Title V

Informational

child mental health behavioral health COVID-19

National MCH Workforce Development Center

Systems Thinking Transforms Care Coordination for Minnesota CYSHCN and their Families

In 2014, Title V leaders from Minnesota aspired to improve the lives of CYSHCN and their families by improving access to quality care. While exploring options to begin this work, Minnesota connected with the NMCHWDC through the Cohort program (now called the Learning Journey). The team was introduced to systems thinking tools in the early stages and quickly realized the impact that this approach could have on the transformational change that they hoped to achieve.

CSHCN Title V care coordination

The Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health

Inaugural Maternal Mental Health State Report Card (2023)

This report provides the first-ever comprehensive view into the state of maternal mental health in America. It grades states in 3 areas: Providers and Programs, Screening and Screening Reimbursement, and Insurance Coverage and Payment. Up to 3 points are provided for each of the 17 measures within these domains. An interactive map is also available.

behavioral health maternal mental health report card

American Academy of Pediatrics

Anxiety Treatment, Vaccine Safety, Mental Health and Firearm Injuries, Depression and Firearm Access, Neonatal Care Standards

Trends in Office-Based Anxiety Treatment Among U.S. Children, Youth, and Young Adults

This July 2023 Pediatrics study found a significant increase in children and teens diagnosed with anxiety during office visits but a decrease in the proportion receiving therapy, which included counseling or psychotherapy. It also found the likelihood of a patient receiving medication alone during office visits significantly increased over time. The authors suggest that decline in therapy and the greater reliance on medications for anxiety disorders may reflect growing resource constraints in office settings within the context of a child and youth mental health crisis that has been building over time.

Safety of COVID-19 mRNA Vaccination Among Young Children

This July 2023 Pediatrics study reveals no safety concerns were found in a recent evaluation of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines given to young children. Researchers reviewed more than 245,000 COVID-19 mRNA vaccine doses in children 5 years and younger.

Most Children Unlikely to Receive Timely Access to Mental Health Services After Firearm Injury

More than 3 in 5 children do not receive mental health services after firearm injury. After a nonfatal firearm injury, children are at risk for developing adverse mental health outcomes, including new trauma-related disorders and substance use disorders. Timely connection to these services may improve long-term outcomes. Children with previous mental health service use or with a mental health diagnosis detected during the firearm injury encounter have higher odds of accessing mental health services and timelier connection with mental health services during the 6 months after injury.

Firearms Availability Among High-School Age Youth With Recent Depression or Suicidality

New research found teens experiencing depression and/or suicidal ideations had increased perceived access to firearms compared to peers without these mental adversities, and comparable rates of personal firearm possession. This June 2023 Pediatrics study examines data from a 2020 nationally representative sample of teens and their caregivers.

Dispensing Medications at the Hospital Upon Discharge from an Emergency Department

This June 2023 Pediatrics study lays out the evidence for emergency department outpatient pharmacy dispensing of medications to be a part of standard care.

National Standards for Levels of Neonatal Care to Improve Health Outcomes for Hospitalized Infants

This June 2023 Pediatrics policy statement involves national standards that are a complementary tool to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Verification Program established by AAP in 2013. These standards are identified as minimum requirements for each level of neonatal care.

child mental health immunizations adolescent mental health infant health emergency health care

Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs

Creating a Workplace Environment Supportive of Well-Being

The workplace environment can affect mental health, impacting staff’s ability to focus, make decisions, overcome obstacles, and work collaboratively. AMCHP also acknowledges that staff may have existing mental health concerns and other needs. AMCHP is committed to supporting staff mental and emotional health and well-being by fostering a supportive workplace environment through this statement.

mental health workforce development workplace wellness

The Home Visiting Applied Research Collaborative (HARC)

Service Coordination in Home Visiting: A Toolkit for Practice and Research

The purpose of the toolkit is to promote the use of evidence by stakeholders to strengthen coordination. The project aligns with HARC’s efforts to promote coordination as a core element of home visiting and an essential component of ECS. The toolkit includes a framework and set of indicators for coordination, self-assessment tool, results of state and local program surveys, and case studies.

home visiting care coordination early childhood systems

Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation

A Change Framework to Design Systems that Engage Paternal Relatives and Promote Racial Justice (PDF)

This brief describes how participants in a Breakthrough Series Collaborative used a guiding framework called a Collaborative Change Framework to build practices and structures to improve engagement of fathers and paternal relatives in the child welfare system. The brief features video examples of strategies that teams tested within the framework domains to improve programming and practice to promote racial justice for men of color in the child welfare system.

child welfare paternal engagement systems building

Rural Health Research Gateway

Providing High-Quality Obstetric Care in Rural Alaska (PDF)

The purpose of this case study is to highlight a hospital providing care to rural American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) patients within the state of Alaska. The case study examines the maternity care context with attention to the intersection of race and geography with social determinants of health to inform clinical and policy efforts to improve rural maternal health and health equity in Alaska and beyond.

rural health maternal health health disparities

National Institutes of Health, Office of Research on Women’s Health

Maternal Morbidity & Mortality Web Portal

The NIH Web Portal for Information about Maternal Morbidity and Mortality includes definitions of mortality and morbidity, the life course perspective, a fact sheet, video, studies, funding opportunities, events, and information about maternal health across NIH.

maternal mortality maternal morbidity maternal health

Training & Educational

Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs

Policy & Partnerships Town Hall Series

Thursday, July 13
2:00pm to 3:00pm

Each month, the AMCHP Government Affairs team holds a virtual session to provide updates in federal MCH policy. Listeners will hear from national, federal, and state partners as well. The series occurs on the second Thursday of each month.

maternal health mental health behavioral health

National Institute for Children’s Healthcare Quality

Support and Compassion for Maternal Mental Health Improvements Podcast

In this episode of Before Birth & Beyond NICHQ Associate Director of Research and Evaluation Dr. Meera Menon talked about her experiences navigating roles as a maternal child health researcher and new mom. Maternal and caregiver mental health resources for healthcare professionals are included. And another NICHQ staffer was interviewed about why they work in MCH.

maternal health mental health behavioral health

Training & Educational Webinars

ASPHN

MCH Nutrition Council Quarterly TA on Integrating Nutrition into Title V

Thursday, June 15
2:00pm to 3:00pm ET

The MCH Nutrition Council Quarterly Webinars help MCH Nutrition Professionals better understand MCHB programs and identify ways to integrate nutrition into Title V. For more information, please email Sandy Perkins.

maternal nutrition child nutrition Title V

Autism Intervention Research Network on Physical Health

Genomics and Research Funding Gaps

Genomics for the Well-being of Autistic People: Challenges and Recommendations

Tuesday, June 20
4:00pm to 5:00pm ET

Equitable and just genetic research requires an examination of the ethical questions pertaining to marginalized communities. Many have expressed concerns over current practices of autism-related genetic research, urging the field to shift towards practices that ensure benefits and protect against harm. As an interdisciplinary working group of autistic and non-autistic individuals, we have developed guidelines for leveraging genetics to enhance the quality of life, health, and autonomy of autistic persons.

Structural Discrimination in Physical Health-Related Research for Cognitively Able Autistic Adults

Tuesday, June 27
4:00pm to 5:00pm ET

Topics will include:

• Importance of addressing physical health disparity conditions in autistic adults
• Structural discrimination in NIH-funded studies on physical health disparity conditions in autistic adults
• Description of conflicts of interest within an NIH-funded culture of academia that contribute to systemic structural discrimination in funding policies

autism health disparities physical health

Rural Health Research Gateway

Ambulance Deserts: Geographic Disparities in the Provision of Ambulance Services

Monday, June 26, 2023
1:00pm to 2:00pm ET

Access to timely ambulance service is an essential part of the emergency medical system, yet ambulance access varies widely with significant gaps across the country. During this webinar, Dr. Yvonne Jonk from the Maine Rural Health Research Center will present key findings from a new chartbook that analyzes 41 states and identifies places and people that are in Ambulance Deserts (more than 25 minutes from an ambulance station.

rural health emergency medical services chartbook

Training & Educational Webinar Archives

National Institutes of Health, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

NIH IMPROVE Innovative Approaches to Improve Maternal Health Workshop

This May 2023 panel session featured experts focusing on the best ways to move new maternal health technology into the community, how to address health disparities faced by pregnant people, and improve access to diagnostic and treatment tools. Topics included technology, clinical implications, community engagement, implementation, regulatory considerations, government funding, payors and investors, and more. Other highlights included a poster session on clinical research and interactive discussions designed to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration. Video casts are available for each day.

maternal health health disparities