Maternal & Child Health
Job Description
Maternal and child health professionals are part of the swiftly expanding public health sector in the United States, centered around medical care needed by women, children, and families.
They keep women informed about family planning and sexual reproductive medical services, work to make pregnant women healthier, and increase the health and vaccination rates of young children.
Responsibilities
A maternal and child health specialist researches and tests ways to improve the health delivery system for mothers and their children. This involves not only using applied research, but also educating patients and healthcare workers and functioning in an advocacy role as well.
They are often at the forefront of developing, analyzing, and implementing maternity-related public health programs, which may be at the local, state, national, or international level.
Common responsibilities of maternal and child health specialists include:
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Monitoring the local area to assess overall health concerns.
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Developing and implementing policy changes and plans to meet any health services needs that arise in a given community.
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Provide outreach services, informing the community about matters of maternal and child health and social services.
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Gathering information and preparing child and/or family data reports.
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Attend required meetings, events, or training seminars as necessary.
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Maintaining effective communication with a wide array of individuals to reach strategic goals.
Skills
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Communication |
Must effectively communicate with your co-workers to ensure the best care and the proper procedures. Must be able to communicate in high-stress environments. |
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Active Listening |
Offering your full attention to an individual person or group in order to fully understand problems and their nature. |
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Critical Thinking |
Must use logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. |
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Judgment and Decision Making |
Needs to be able to act autonomously and make difficult decisions that would benefit the patient or make corrections. Must consider all benefits and repercussions of potential actions and choose the appropriate one. |
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Complex Problem Solving |
Must be able to identify complex problems and develop and evaluate corrective options and implement solutions. |
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Stress Management |
Must be able to endure intense situations and handle pressure that comes with extreme situations you may encounter. |
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Trustworthiness |
Must be trustworthy because you have people's lives in your hands and what you do could help or hurt them. They are entrusted with a great responsibility and must live up to it. |
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Perceptiveness |
Gauging how people react and read their body language to decipher their feelings and predict their actions. They must be able to determine if people could be a risk to themselves or others and to distinguish truths from lies. |
Working Conditions
Due to the far-flung and growing demand for public health experts, maternal and child health specialists can find careers in both the private and public sectors.
Hospitals, clinics, insurance companies, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working both nationally and abroad need experts in maternal and child health care.
The same is true of many government organizations at both the state and federal levels.
Like other public health care managers and researchers, working conditions vary widely for maternal and child health experts.
They often work in an administrative or research capacity and may have a regular 40 hour workweek. Working more closely with patients, advocacy, and research may all result in overtime or other alternate scheduling.
Salary Outlook
| Estimated Annual Salary | Average Hourly Wage | Positions Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| $44,532.00 | $21.41 | 5,800 |