Greetings and a Happy New Year!  Here is a quick update on what is happening within the MCH Section.   Since early December, the Executive Committee and Section Councilors have been meeting via phone conferencing.   We have been working on three issues:  membership, the mid-year meeting, and Section-wide policy development.

The overall plan for Section development is to determine the present goals and objectives of the Section.  APHA has emphasized strategic planning and redirection, and the MCH Section needs to face these concerns, also.

Membership:  The membership of the Section has slipped over the past four years from almost 3,000 members to fewer than 1,800.  While APHA has experienced some loss, the percentage for MCH is greater, and some other sections have grown during this time.  The importance of membership can not be underrated.  Membership count determines not only our number of Governing Council members, but also the funds we receive as a Section from the Association.

Led by Chair-elect Joanne Fisher and Membership Chair Jessie Hood Richardson, the Steering Group has implemented several plans to increase membership.  Laura Kavanagh and Jane Pearson have also worked on a document about membership which has been e-mailed to all individuals who stopped by the booth in Boston.   Joanne is working on a new booth design for the Annual Meetings.

During a recent trip to Washington, I was able to meet with Fran Atkinson, director of component affairs for APHA, and ask for help developing some of these plans.  She assigned a student intern, Jessica Murray, to work with MCH on a marketing plan for membership.  Stay tuned - Jessica will be calling you soon.

Midyear Meeting: The midyear meeting, was held March 3-4 in Washington, D.C., and is usually a time when we come together to discuss the program for next year and review policies for action during the fall Governing Council session.  This year, we also reviewed Section activities and goals.  Alan Baker at APHA funded a half-day meeting with Dee Jeffers, who is dedicated to capacity building and strategic planning.  Using the work plan developed by the Intersectional Council, a meeting agenda will be published. 

Policy Development:  The MCH Section supports an active agenda of policy activities in order to promote effective actions that support the health of mothers and their children.  The Action Board has chosen to review all policies regarding child health in the next year.  We will work closely with this group to examine APHA child health policy:  what is useful, what needs to be removed, and what is still missing?  Developing policy statements which can move quickly to action plans is one of the goals of the capacity building meeting in March.  At present, the Breastfeeding Committee has a policy under review, which was discussed at the March meeting.

Section News: Holly Grason has agreed to represent MCH on the Action Board.  We all extend thanks to Ben Gitterman for his years of service on this committee.

Clare Feinson has remained newsletter editor.  She is working with the Section membership to develop a useful document which will help keep the membership informed of Section activities and developments.

Jane Pearson is working with Fran Atkinson on the development of the new e-Communities software at APHA.  We are looking for someone to be the communications chair, to work with Jane, Clare, myself, and Association staff  to smooth transition from our present e-mail list to the new e-Communities tool.  Please contact me at BarbL11@aol.com if you are interested in this important position.

In conclusion, let me just add how excited I am to start on my two year term as Section chair.  MCH has much to add to the work of APHA and to the breadth of public health.  Thank you for your support and attention.

Barb