Welcome to the CSTE Chronic Disease/Maternal & Child Health/Oral Health Committee!
 
This committee seeks to facilitate and support the efforts of chronic disease, maternal and child health, and oral health epidemiologists working in state, territorial, local, and tribal health agencies, and to provide a forum for collaboration.
 
Chronic disease, maternal and child health, and oral health epidemiologists all provide leadership in their organizations by coordinating information and resources across multiple systems existing in numerous public and private agencies to ensure comprehensive surveillance, implementation of special epidemiologic studies, and availability of epidemiologic information needed for policy and program development. While we may work in different topic areas, many of our epidemiologic tools and methods are the same, and we have much to learn from each other and many opportunities to collaborate on cross-cutting issues.
 
This committee strives to facilitate communication and collaboration among peers and partner organizations; to strengthen the workforce for chronic disease, maternal and child health, and oral health applied epidemiology; to develop and disseminate products that strengthen and guide the practice of chronic disease, maternal and child health, and oral health epidemiology; and to advocate for resources and scientifically-based policies that strengthen our fields.
 
If you are interested in becoming more involved in this committee, please let us know. We welcome your involvement.
 

Chronic Disease Epidemiology
The committee has had a strong interest in building chronic disease epidemiology capacity in state health departments. Efforts in this area include publication of the report Essential Functions of Chronic Disease Epidemiology in State Health Departments, development the 2007 position statement on state-level chronic disease epidemiology capacity, and release of state-specific capacity profiles based on Chronic Disease Epidemiology Capacity Supplemental Report from the in 2009 National Assessment of Epidemiology Capacity. Individual state profiles in chronic disease epidemiology capacity have been created to allow states to compare their results to the national response. The results of these assessments have allowed CSTE to depict trends in capacity measures, identify gaps in resources and provide recommendations to improve capacity where needed. 

In addition to the state chronic disease profiles, CSTE has also provided funding to three states to perform data linkages of one chronic disease in particular, cardiovascular disease (CVD). This pilot project linked existing data sources to improve the quality of CVD data to provide information needed for monitoring CVD risk factors, morbidity and mortality. This project is a first step in developing better regional understanding of CVD burden and can serve as a model for providing more comprehensive data on other episodic chronic diseases.  For more information about this pilot, read this brief summary of the CVD surveillance data pilot project .  To see the final methodologies of the pilot states please use the links below:

•         Massachusetts
•         Nebraska
•         Wisconsin

Current CSTE activities

• Revising the list indicators for chronic disease epidemiology capacity along with CDC and NACDD
• Developing an orientation manual for senior level chronic disease epidemiologists
• Continuing to supporting the pilot to link cardiovascular disease data among state-level health databases for a more comprehensive cardiovascular disease surveillance system. 

A recent IOM report, A Nationwide Framework for Surveillance of Cardiovascular and Chronic Lung Diseases, presents a conceptual framework for national surveillance of cardiovascular and chronic lung disease and may be of interest to some members.

The Chronic Disease Subcommittee is involved with several organizations in their efforts to combat various chronic diseases including The National Salt Reduction Initiative, the National Forum for Heart Disease & Stroke Prevention, and others.

Maternal and Child Health

Previous assessments of the field of MCH Epidemiology resulted in many recommendations, including the need to identify best practices for the field, the importance of advanced training for MCH epidemiology staff, the need for MCH staff to have ready access to a variety of databases including those that are linked, and the necessity of a visible MCH epidemiology presence. In 2010, CSTE released Maternal & Child Health Epidemiology Capacity: Findings and Recommendations, reporting findings from the 2009 CSTE National Assessment of Epidemiology Capacity and providing recommendations for improving capacity. 
 
Recent efforts to better organize MCH epidemiologists in state and local public health agencies are underway. Initial discussions among MCH epidemiologists and partners took place at the 2007 MCH EPI Conference. As a result of those initial efforts, the MCH Epi Group formed with membership from CSTE, the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP) and CityMatCH.  The mission of the MCH Epi group is to promote the use of data to guide public health practice and improve maternal and child health. The organization will accomplish this by supporting the use of effective public health surveillance and epidemiologic practice through training, capacity development, and peer consultation; developing standards for practice; and advocating for resources and scientifically based policy.  For more information about the MCH Epi group, please visit www.MCHepi.org.