CityMatCH, the national organization of urban maternal and child health leaders managed through the UNMC Department of Pediatrics, has secured $2.56 million in funding ($640,000 per year for four years) from the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Maternal Child Health Bureau (MCHB). The award period begins today and continues through April 30, 2019.
The Department of Pediatrics has provided infrastructure and leadership to CityMatCH for the past 25 years. CityMatCH functions as a membership organization of local public health departments in urban communities across the country. It has had a continuous partnership with MCHB for the entire 25-year span.
The need for the organization was demonstrated through a survey, conducted in the late 1980s, to examine whether urban MCH programs around the country were facing similar challenges (yes) and sharing solutions (no). The CityMatCH project evolved into a national membership organization for local, urban health departments in 1991 and currently has 170 member organizations.
“Our work supports urban maternal child health professionals across the country in their efforts to challenge health inequities and improve the health of all women, children and families, through innovative and evidence-based practice,” said John Sparks, M.D., professor and chairman of pediatrics and co-investigator on the grant.
“The magnitude of our impact rests firmly on the strong foundational support received from UNMC,” said Chad Abresch, executive director of CityMatCH and co-investigator on the grant.
Through MCHB’s Partnership for Urban MCH Leadership Community Cooperative Agreement, CityMatCH aims to strengthen the knowledge, skills, and abilities of urban MCH leaders in 30 U.S. cities to achieve and evaluate collective impact; strengthen epidemiology capacity of local and state health departments; and serve as an effective national voice in communicating emerging MCH issues and advancing MCH priorities.
Active CityMatCH projects include the Institute for Equity in Birth Outcomes, Perinatal Periods of Risk, Eliminating Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission, CityLeaders, and the Community Adolescent Futures Initiative.
Annually, CityMatCH hosts The CityMatCH Urban MCH Leadership Conference, attracting more than 300 local, state and federal level MCH professionals. Every other year the conference is combined with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s and MCHB’s MCH Epidemiology Conference, attracting more than 600 MCH professionals from all levels. Learn more about CityMatCH here.