Maternal
and Child Health (MCH) Section
Mission
The mission of the Maternal and Child Health Program is to improve
the health status of children and youth, women and their families by providing
technical and financial support to local community agencies, schools and voluntary
organizations. Services include program planning, technical consultation,
professional education and training, and grants for specialized purposes.
A significant portion of the budget consists of grant funds for support of
local services. Increasingly, capacity is being refocused and developed to
carry out the core public health functions of assessment, policy development
and assurance related to the reforming health care system. The resulting components
of these activities are coordinated with related local programs so that comprehensive
maternal and child health services are provided to individuals.
Overview
The programs within the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Section
strive to improve the health status of children and youth, women and their
families. The MCH Section provides a focal point for influencing the efforts
of a broad range of agencies and programs committed to this goal. The Section
supports their efforts by providing administrative and program assistance
to Community Health Boards, Tribal Governments, schools, voluntary organizations,
and private health care providers. In addition, MCH programs continue to give
particular attention to their relationships with Minnesota’s local public
health system and are involved in a number of collaborative activities to
strengthen and enhance this relationship.
The overall role of the MCH Section within Minnesota’s
health care delivery environment is:
- to assess the health needs of mothers, children, and their families;
- to use that information to advocate effectively on their behalf in the
development of policies concerning organizational and operational issues
of health systems; and
- to advocate for programs and funding streams which have the potential
to improve their health.
In addition, the MCH Section has focused on quality assurance
of public sector health services, assurance of targeted outreach and service
coordination for hard-to-reach and high-risk populations, and community health
promotion.
