Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

Authors:

• Kara Odom Walker, MD, MPH, MSHS; Executive Vice President, Chief Population Health Officer; Nemours Children’s Health
• Laura Hogan, MPA, Consultant, Laura Hogan Consulting
• Daniella Gratale, MA; Associate Vice President, Federal Affairs; Nemours Children’s Health

Thank you to Hannah Wagner, MPP, Senior Advisor, Policy Development and Partnership, Nemours Children’s Health, for editing this blog post.

“[The] challenges today’s generation of young people face are unprecedented and uniquely hard to navigate. And the effect these challenges have had on their mental health is devastating […] If we seize this moment, step up for our children and their families in their moment of need, and lead with inclusion, kindness, and respect, we can lay the foundation for a healthier, more resilient, and more fulfilled nation.”

– Vivek Murthy, MD, MBA, US Surgeon General, Protecting Youth Mental Health Advisory: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory, 2021

America’s children and youth report staggering rates of sadness, depression, anxiety, and loneliness. This can result in high risk for suicide, depression, substance use disorder, poor academic performance, and other severe consequences. Nearly 60% of female high school students and about 30% of male students surveyed reported experiencing persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness for two weeks or more in the past year. Moreover, a 2023 survey showed that 86% of children report that they worry, and 36% report being sad or miserable when they worry. While substance use among young people decreased over recent years, the spread of fentanyl has led to a tragic epidemic of overdose deaths. And, younger children are showing signs of acute distress with suicide now reported as the second most common cause of death for children ages 10 to 14. [Read more…]

Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

On December 1^st, Nemours Children’s Health, March of Dimes (MOD), Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago hosted the third annual Hot Topics in Neonatology^® 2022 Cindy Pellegrini Maternal & Child Health Advocacy Day.

This virtual event honors Cindy Pellegrini, who passed away in 2019, leaving behind a legacy as a tireless advocate for maternal and child health. The event brings together health care professionals and advocates to share their experience and expertise and ask Congress to act on important infant and maternal health policies.
[Read more…]

Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

Today Nemours Children’s Health’s Executive Vice President, Dr. Kara Odom Walker (also a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians) and Daniella Gratale, Director of the Office of Child Health Policy and Advocacy, participated in the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health (the Conference) —more than 50 years after the last conference on this topic. In collaboration with the Conference, Nemours Children’s made a commitment to help address hunger and improve nutrition and health for our nation’s children. [Read more…]

Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

On Monday, August 1, 2022, Nemours Children’s Health hosted a Pediatric Mental Health Roundtable at the Nemours Estate in Wilmington, Delaware. Special guests included U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-DE), U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-DE), Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE-At-Large), Delaware’s Lieutenant Governor Bethany Hall-Long, and other community and business leaders, state officials, and area youth and families. This post describes key policy recommendations highlighted throughout the event in several areas, including pediatric mental health workforce, infrastructure, telehealth and school wellness. 

[Read more…]

Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

Nemours Children’s Health Experts Outline Key Population Health Strategies in International Journal

Authors address school health centers, population health networks, pediatric payment models

Nemours Children’s Health is pleased to share highlights from a special section on population health published in the February edition of Current Opinion in Pediatrics.

The special section includes an invited editorial from Kara Odom Walker, MD, MPH, MSHS, executive vice president and chief population health officer at Nemours Children’s Health, as well as three review articles from Nemours Children’s experts. The three Nemours-authored review articles summarize current evidence and provide a framework for strategies to advance key aspects of pediatric population health: population health networks, alternate payment models, and school-based health centers. The special section includes three additional articles from other noted experts in the field. Four of the six articles are open access, available at no cost to the field at large. [Read more…]