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Congratulations to the following members of the MCHWG!
September 2012
Joan Bloch, PhD received tenure with promotion within the College of Nursing and Health Professions. Dr. Bloch is strongly committed to her work in MCH through the MCHWG.
Summer 2012
Lauren Forbes, upcoming second year MPH student, was named the 2012 recipient of the Joseph C. Tringali Memorial Scholarship. This MCH Scholarship is awarded to a public health student who demonstrates a firm commitment to addressing the challenges facing disadvantaged children and improving their opportunities for healthy and productive lives.
Theodora Isekenegbe, upcoming second year MPH student, was selected as a 2012-2013 APHA MCH Section Student Fellow. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to become involved in the APHA and gain a greater understanding of MCH through a national organization. Theodora is the 3rd MCHWG student to be selected for this fellowship in recent years.
May 2012
Lauren Forbes, first year MPH student, was named the 2012 recipient of the Joseph C. Tringali Memorial Scholarship. This MCH Scholarship is awarded to a public health student who demonstrates a firm commitment to addressing the challenges facing disadvantaged children and improving their opportunities for healthy and productive lives.
April 2012
Joan Bloch was named a recipient of the Louis and Bessie Stein Fellowship for 2012-13. Her proposal was entitled: Research Collaboration Studying Health Care and Birth Outcomes among Migrant Women of African Ancestry in the US and Israel.
February 2012
Nathalie Bartle, MCHWG Chair, was awarded the Maternity Care Coalition’s “Spirit of Motherhood” Award recognizing her commitment to MCH in Philadelphia. For more information, click here.
Summer 2011
Rosie Ganser, 2nd year in the DUSPH MPH program, was named an APHA MCH Section Fellow for the 2011 – 2012 academic year! Rosie has been very involved in the MCHWG through her participation in the Preconception Peer Education Program, the Prenatal Care Capacity assessment, and her practicum work on developing a breastfeeding policy within Drexel. Congratulations Rosie!
June 2011
Katie McSloy, Ngoc Thien Nguyen, and Aaron Randolph Pankiewicz (2011 fulltime MPH graduates affiliated with the MCHWG through research and/or activities) were inducted into the Delta Omega National Honor Society. Membership is awarded to those students who have achieved the highest grades in their class, reflecting each individual’s commitment to excellence in the application and synthesis of public health principles as well as to the protection and improvement of population and community health.
April 2011
Katie McSloy, 2011 MPH graduate, was awarded the "Best Graduate Student Poster Presentation-Humanities & Social Science Research" certificate at Drexel University’s Research Day for her research on factors associated with obesity and healthy behaviors in Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs. MCHWG members Maggie O’Neil and Renee Turchi worked with Katie on this project. Click here to see the final poster.
Carla Campbell, MD has been elected to the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Environment Hazards.
December 2010
Dr. Renee Turchi received the US Department of Health and Human Services "Champion in the Field of Maternal and Child Health" award recognizing her contributions related to the medical home and children and youth with special health care needs.
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Maggie O'Neil, PhD, PT, MPH was one of four Drexel faculty members who received the Career Development Award for the 2008 – 2009 academic year. These awards are designed to help faculty increase their exposure to colleagues at other institutions who can be collaborators and role models while introducing outside scholars to faculty at Drexel.
Additionally, Dr. O'Neil is the recipient of three new grants funding her research related to obesity, physical activity and children with special health care needs. She has also been named a member of a working group that is developing the National Physical Activity Plan for Americans and has been invited to be a consultant for the YMCA Pioneering Healthier Communities program and the Activate America Program.
Dr. O'Neil has also received tenure and has been promoted to Associate Professor in the College of Nursing and Health Professions.
Dr. Maggie O'Neil donated this treadmill to the Rehabilitation Department at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in thanks after conducting a study in the outpatient clinics in the hospital. Pictured are (from left to right) Christine Goetschius MS, OTR/L, Director of Rehabilitation Services, Robert Bonner, MD, Medical Director, Ambulatory Pediatrics, Sherrie Cooper-Gowans, Senior Director of Operations, St. Christopher’s Pediatric Associates, Maggie O'Neil, PhD, PT, MPH, Faculty, Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions and Donna Burris, Director of Operations, General Pediatrics.
Renee Turchi, MD, MPH and Maggie O’Neil will work together on a new grant entitled, "United Care Healthy Heroes Title Child Health Project in Philadelphia for treating Obesity in Children." In addition, Dr. Turchi has had several publications over the past few months related to her work on the medical home. Dr. Turchi was also the co-editor of the September issue of Pediatric Annals.
Joan Rosen Bloch, PhD, CRNP, was recently awarded a 3-year NIH Research Grant entitled "Perinatal Health Disparities Between Foreign-born and US-born Black Women." The study explores in-depth exposures that underpin the protective effect of foreign nativity on adverse birth outcomes among Black women in the US.
Maggie O’Neil, PhD, PT, MPH is the recipient of the 2009 National Annual Research Award from the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), Section on Pediatrics. This award recognizes researchers who have contributed to the field of pediatric rehabilitation and health outcomes. Dr. O’Neil was noted to have a sustained line of funded research in her contributions to the field. Her research examines health measures and outcomes (i.e., physical activity, fitness, environmental support), and process of care (family-centered approaches) in children with disabilities (i.e., cerebral palsy and developmental delay) and children with chronic conditions (i.e., overweight/obesity) and their families. Dr. O'Neil's research funding includes grants from the APTA Foundation for Research, the APTA Section on Pediatrics, the National Institute of Disability Rehabilitation Research (Switzer Merit Fellowship Award) and the National Institutes of Health.
Mariana Chilton, PhD has received the 2008 Young Professional APHA/MCH National Award. The Young Professional Award is awarded to someone who has made a significant contribution to the field of maternal and child health through a specific, particularly creative endeavor or through outstanding achievement over a number of years in the areas of administration, advocacy, clinical care, community service, education, or research. Potential for continuing impact on the field is also important.
In addition, Dr. Chilton's remarkable "Witnesses to Hunger" exhibit has been featured in news articles across the country. A syndicated, Associated Press article profiles her research, along with her "Witnesses to Hunger" exhibit. The article appeared in The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Miami Herald and many more. You can learn more about her research at www.witnessestohunger.org.
As written by Dean Marla Gold, this is an incredible accomplishment for Dr. Chilton, who has focused America on the issue of hunger via her work in a short period of time. Mariana has been asked to present her work on Capital Hill to the Agriculture Subcommittee, among others, and her "Witnesses to Hunger" exhibit is planned to travel to sites outside of Philadelphia this spring.
Jennifer Breaux, MPH, CHES has received two noteworthy awards this year. She has been awarded the 2008 – 2009 American Public Health Association (APHA) Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Section Student fellowship. The overall goal of the Student Fellows Program is to foster the development of leaders in science, program, and policy related to the health of women, children, and their families. The fellowship is designed to provide student fellows an opportunity to enrich their professional experience by participating in professional education and policy development at a national level. With this fellowship, she will also be assigned an APHA/MCH mentor.
Additionally, this spring, Jennifer won the Teaching Assistant Award for Drexel University. About 100 students were nominated this year. Jen was one of only 4 awardees.