MCH Epidemiology Workforce

The Office of MCH Epidemiology (MCH EPI) is responsible for epidemiology, data analysis, and MCH data systems within the Division of Public Health (DPH). The office is embedded within Lifespan Health Services Unit, alongside the MCH programs, and has been developed to support Nebraska’s Title V programs and stakeholders over the past 22 years.

The workforce and capacity has grown over time, and is currently in a capacity building phase. The Office of MCH EPI has six full time equivalents (FTE), one contracted FTE, and is preparing to add an additional FTE in the near future. MCH EPI consists of the State Systems Development Initiative (SSDI), Title V Needs Assessment and support, The Child and Maternal Death Review Teams (CMDRT), Nebraska Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS), Nebraska’s Maternal Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) performance management and data system, and newly added Surveillance for Emerging Threats to Mothers and Babies (SET-NET). The following section describes the staff, their roles, and funding.

Current Staff

Jennifer Severe-Oforah, MCRP, Office of MCH EPI Administrator

Erika Fuchs, PhD, MPH, CDC MCH Epidemiologist Assignee

Celeste Illian, MPH, MCH Epidemiologist (CMDRT, PRAMS, and SET-NET)  

Shannon Twist, MPH, Health Surveillance Specialist (MIECHV and CMDRT)

TBD, Health Surveillance Specialist (SET-NET)

Jessica Seberger, MA, PRAMS Coordinator

Giana Saitta, BA, PRAMS Data Manager

Sally Mertens, BS, Office of MCH EPI Staff Assistant

Roles and Responsibilities

The MCH EPI Administrator is a long-term employee who has lead and developed the DHHS MCH EPI effort in Nebraska since 2002. The Administrator is responsible for oversight, development, and management of the MCH EPI projects and workforce. This positon is assigned as a core member of the Title V team, is responsible for coordinating the MCH Needs Assessment, and is primarily funded by the SSDI grant. A significant portion of effort is on program development, for example the Administrator invested 3 years to reorganize and build Nebraska’s Maternal Mortality Review Committee so that staff could coordinate, and now the Administrator can focus on building the SET-NET program.  The Administrator has played a lead development role in all projects and staff within the office. The Administrator is responsible for assuring that staff have access to the data and resources they need to perform their work, as well as leading and supporting staff in personal development and achievement of operational/performance goals. Finally, the Administrator serves as a resource to partners within the Division of Public Health, DHHS, external state agencies, and MCH collaborators in the development and implementation of MCH projects/programs.

The CDC MCH Epidemiologist Assignee joined the Office of MCH EPI in September 2020 and is supported with Title V funding. The Assignee fills the role of lead scientist in the office, a position that was vacant for nearly three years when a long term contractor relocated (October 2017). Core responsibilities are to build MCH EPI data and workforce capacity, as well as assure compliance with ethical standards in research and public health practice. To build data capacity the Assignee currently works to support the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) to gain access to, and enhance the utilization of, their data. The work with WIC is a long-term project, but has already been successful in accessing and utilizing data for the WIC Needs Assessment, as well as enabling NE WIC to participate in a Technical Assistance project to potentially link WIC with TNAF/SNAP data in order to increase program participation. In addition, the assignee works with the Blood Lead Program to link with the Birth Certificate data set to improve the demographics of the lead database, and will begin working with the Immunization Registry data in the near future. Beyond providing technical support to MCH EPI and other staff within the Division of Public Health, the Assignee is dedicated to helping to build the future Public Health Workforce.  As an Adjunct Professor at the College of Public Health within the University of Nebraska Medical Center, the Assignee will work with students and interns on an on-going basis, and has successfully completed one internship during the summer of 2021.  Finally, the Assignee is responsible for maintaining the PRAMS Institution Review Board (IRB) clearance.

The MCH Epidemiologist was recruited to join MCH EPI in January of 2020 with the primary role of coordinating the Maternal Mortality Review Committee (MMRC) and supporting the CMDRT. The CMDRT provides oversight to the Douglas County Fetal and Infant Mortality Review committee, so the MCH Epidemiologist is a member of their review team.  In addition, the Epidemiologist provides informal support to the Nebraska Perinatal Quality Improvement Committee as they work on shared interests, such as preterm birth and severe maternal morbidity. Finally, the MCH Epidemiologist provides analytical support to PRAMS, and in the future will also support SET-NET projects. This position is funded by Title V.

The office currently has one Health Surveillance Specialist, and expects to add a second before the end of the 2021 calendar year. The current Specialist is responsible for data collection and management of the CMDRT, a role that includes obtaining all records pertaining to each death of a child aged 0 through17 years in Nebraska, managing the review process, and aggregating the data into several databases once the reviews are complete. In addition, the Specialist tracks status of population-level indicators to inform the CMDRT, the legislature, and stakeholders as appropriate. The Specialist also serves as data support for the MIECHV program which includes preparing quarterly performance reports on the state and local level and annual reporting to HRSA of benchmarks/constructs and demographics. This positon is funded with both Title V and MIECHV funds. The anticipated/forthcoming Specialist will work with the SET-NET program to collect and manage data.

The PRAMS program has been collecting data since 1999 in partnership with the CDC and Title V, and is a model of high quality public health programming.  PRAMS is the cornerstone from which the Office of MCH EPI was built. The Coordinator is responsible for managing the grant, conducting research, and promoting the utilization of PRAMS data to stakeholders and partners.  In addition, the Coordinator provides opportunities for stakeholders to be involved in PRAMS work, including participation on the Steering Committee as well as on various workgroups producing data-to-action products.   The Coordinator is a supervisor and shares responsibilities with the Office Administrator that ensure staff are working as an efficient and effective team.  The PRAMS Data Manager has a significant role ensuring that operations run efficiently and without error.  While the Data Manager primarily focuses on collecting and managing all aspects of the data collection process, there is also an element of quality improvement.  The Data Manager monitors timeliness and accuracy of data, often working with the Coordinator to address issues with CDC or the surveyors as appropriate. Finally, the MCH EPI Staff Assistant, plays a significant role in the PRAMS survey with inventory, and processing of mail, and data entry, in addition to supporting the MCH EPI team.

Impact or Organizational Changes on Future Development

While the pandemic has clearly had an impact on the DHHS and its Divisions, it has had a minimal impact on the functioning of MCH EPI, as the office has grown and developed.  The Office has been able to add staff, train them, and conduct strategic planning throughout 2020 and into 2021.  However, despite this ability to maintain, MCH EPI staff are aware that COVID effects on Nebraska’s women and children will require new, robust data analysis in the future.  The full impacts from individuals delaying care or screening, experiencing increased stress, or dealing with financial/social vulnerability may not be felt for quite some time.

Recent organizational changes that could affect future development include the new State Epidemiologist and the new Director of Operations at the Division of Public Health – two new leaders who bring significant public health experience.  The Office of MCH EPI is excited to begin working with these leaders to ensure that maternal and child health issues are at the forefront of DPH initiatives.

As the Office of MCH EPI continues to build capacity and support staff development, there are areas where growth is expected to occur in the future. Data linkages, access and quality of MCH data, workforce development, and reporting/publications are all emerging issues, and the Office is well positioned at this juncture to address these areas of focus.