Rural Maternal and Child Health Needs Assessment Project Hillary Tellier Stonehill College Senior Healthcare Administration Major National Primary Care Week November 17,

How I Heard About Northern Rhode Island Area Health Education Center Ms. Yvette Mendez lectured at Stonehill College for Professor Miller’s Public and Community Health class Spoke about nriAHEC’s mission and purpose Mentioned that nriAHEC had summer internship opportunities I took her business card, browsed nriAHEC’s website, and contacted Ms. Mendez via to pursue an internship opportunity 2

Rural Maternal and Child Health Project A grant was awarded to nriAHEC from the Rhode Island Department of Health’s Office of Primary Care and Rural Health Supported a community assessment measuring maternal and child health needs in rural communities Targeted the towns of Burrillville, Foster, Glocester, and Scituate for the assessment 3

Assessment Research Methods Outlined four key indicators: -1. Delayed Prenatal Care -2. Infant Mortality -3. Food Insecurity -4. Teen births Researched existing data for targeted communities in 2009 Kids Count Factbook Used other data collection methods: – Designed and distributed a resident maternal and child health survey – Conducted informational interviews with key stakeholders within the targeted communities 4

Community Assessment Findings Burrillville, Foster, Glocester, and Scituate No overly disconcerting poor child outcomes related specifically to delayed prenatal care, infant mortality, food insecurity, and teen births when compared with statewide data Participation rates for the Women, Infants & Children program, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, as well as the school breakfast program were all lower in comparison to state rates Survey respondents indicated that they wanted to learn how to cook healthier within a budget 5

Addressing Needs Discovered Through the Assessment Focused efforts on addressing food insecurity issues “Nutrition Mission”: A nutrition education and outreach workshop Variety of vendors present: Women Infants & Children (WIC) program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Burrillville Farmer’s Market Association, Rhode Island Department of Health’s Healthy Weight Initiative, Kids First, the YWCA Northern Rhode Island, and University of Rhode Island’s Nutrition Education Program Community outreach allowed town residents to learn about the nutrition resources located within their communities 6

Impacts of Internship Discovered how rewarding a career in public health can be Helped me make the transition from student to professional “Tailored” my career path Ultimately, I would like to pursue a masters degree in public health 7

Questions & Answers Contact Information: Hillary Tellier (401)