MCD Global Health

As the lead of the malaria diagnostic and co-lead of the case management components of the U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) Impact Malaria, a five-year global project, MCD provided high-quality malaria technical assistance to 14 African countries in 2021, significantly contributing to PMI Impact Malaria’s goal of reducing malaria mortality and morbidity. MCD led the implementation of outreach training supportive supervision plus (OTSS+), the cornerstone of the PMI Impact Malaria quality improvement (QI) approach; developed the OTSS+ field guide and policies; conducted 6,137 OTSS+ visits in 2,715 public and private health facilities; implemented QI mentoring and peer-to-peer approaches; conducted malaria diagnostics refresher trainings ,improving 556 laboratory technicians’ skills in malaria microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests; provided support to countries in setting up national malaria bank slides; and conducted group antenatal care in Benin.

The Good Will Fund was established in 2021 to support the Equatorial Guinea Ministry of Health and Social Work to procure and deliver essential medicines and diagnostic equipment to improve the population’s access to medical treatment and health services. Training and supportive supervision in supply chain management are provided at the health district level, and the project incorporates stock management tools and techniques to ensure adequate storage and distribution of supplies. 

MCD contributes to the Private Sector Health Partnership Activity (PSHPA) in Benin goal of strengthening Beninese capacity in effectively managing the provision of reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health (RMNCH) services as well as increasing the use of those services. Specifically, MCD provides technical assistance in registering and accrediting private health facilities that offer RMNCH services. In 2021, MCD supported 301 private health centers/clinics in obtaining licenses to legally operate in Benin; 63 private health centers/clinics in advancing their accreditation; trained 130 private sector health providers in high-impact RMNCH intervention packages and 559 health staff in gender equity and inclusion; and integrated 124 registered private health facilities’ reports to the national health information system.

Healthy Lincoln County (HLC) supports communities in Lincoln County, Maine, to improve the health and well-being of its residents. HLC’s focus areas include substance use and misuse prevention, nutrition education, and food security interventions. 

HLC delivers the federally funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - Education (SNAP-Ed) that supports evidence-based nutrition education and obesity prevention interventions. HLC carries out tobacco policy and environmental change prevention with retailers and youth, smoke-free environments, substance use and misuse prevention (community awareness, risk reduction, life skills, marijuana use education, underage drinking, reduction of access to prescription drugs, school policy best practice, and drug-free communities), and convenes the Substance Use Prevention Partnership (SUPP) comprised of local law enforcement, media sources, individuals from faith-based organizations, school systems, and leaders from youth-serving agencies.

MCD provides virtual and in-person training and technical assistance to community-based organizations, health systems, clinics, community health workers, and national and state public health programs. Trainings topics include noncommunicable diseases, hypertension, cholesterol, diabetes, asthma, breast, cervical and colorectal cancer, telehealth, and stroke care. Trainings are available 24/7, in English and Spanish, and are on-demand, and self-paced and include video demonstrations, interactive features, and test questions. Downloadable handouts, resources, and helpful links are available throughout the training.  

CHW Core Competency training uses instructional design, e-learning expertise, and adult learning principles for comprehensive and interactive learning. It offers self-paced modules with custom animation and videos, homework assignments, and live virtual sessions. The 40-hour training follows the CHW Core Consensus Project (C3) CHW Roles and Competencies recommendations. 

In 2021, MCD received a three-year HRSA grant to expand behavioral health care services in rural Maine through education, training, and mentorship programs. 

This initiative supports early career staff to develop new skills and become eligible for additional certifications, as well as offers opportunities to enhance skills in treatment and intervention for behavioral health disorders, focusing on substance use disorder and builds a network of partners to implement training, mentorship programs, and recruitment for behavioral health providers in rural areas. These partners engage with a broad group of stakeholders and people who have experience with substance use disorder with the goal of increasing connections to existing career opportunities in behavioral health and emphasizing the role everyone has in helping foster recovery-ready communities.

Since 2011, MCD has been home to the Northeast Telehealth Resource Center (NETRC), serving New England and New York. Funded under HRSA’s Office for Advancement of Telehealth, NETRC aims to increase access to care for rural and underserved populations through telehealth solutions. The NETRC serves numerous stakeholders (e.g., health systems, hospitals, providers, academic institutes, policy makers, etc.) by offering services from needs assessments to strategic/business planning, and exploration of grant funding, design and implementation of protocols and workflows, telehealth technology selection and use, and more. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, NETRC has served as a vital resource, helping thousands of health care providers and systems to rapidly implement and expand telehealth services to meet health needs of communities and reduce exposures while ensuring continuity of care and emergency response.

A Project ECHO hub since 2018, MCD leads programs that help organizations and providers build capacity to address key health issues. One ECHO program is the Maine Pediatric Behavioral Health ECHO that works with Maine’s Pediatric & Behavioral Health Partnership. By providing a forum for primary care teams to bring pediatric behavioral health cases for review, it builds confidence to manage pediatric psychiatry cases as well as detect, assess, treat, refer, and gain access to resources for patients and others, and provides real-time review of cases with a specialized team. A second program is the Collaborative for Advancing Rural Excellence and Equity (CARE2), made in response to COVID-19’s impact on behavioral health of rural communities in northern New England and New York, specifically residents with substance use disorder and older adults in long-term care. CARE2 facilitates evidence-based practice through ECHO programs and provides resources through an open-access e-learning portal