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GW Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health

Milken Institute School of Public Health

Faculty and Student Research
Faculty and Student Research

Faculty and Student Research

The GW Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health is a hub of research activity, conducted by both faculty and students. 

Past projects have included:

The SOMAD Project

Part of a nationwide effort to collect data about wearing of facial masks. Officially called the Systematic Observation of Mask Adherence and Distancing (SOMAD), it was led by Dr. Deborah Cohen with Kaiser Permanente Research in Pasadena, CA. Our own Dr. Monica Ruiz had worked previously with Dr. Cohen and thus was able to bring this innovative and timely research project to our MCH students. Dr. Ruiz mentored 8 students who collected data twice weekly through on-site observations at a variety of community-based locations in the Washington, D.C. area. The project resulted in a published paper you can find here, and another article is currently under review. The amazing contributions of the SOMAD citizen scientists were also highlighted in GW Today and the GWSPH Press.

Developing Families Center for Maternal Health

The center conducted a study to guide DFC’s new D.C. Maternal Health Fund which will support new/existing programs that address maternal health in D.C. The research study included clinic/CBO surveys; qualitative interviews with providers; focus groups with women; and a quantitative survey of women. Students worked on various aspects of this comprehensive study including literature reviews, analysis and presentation of existing maternal health data/indicators, developing study instruments/tools, data collection, and data analysis (qualitative and quantitative). 

Sedentary Behavior, Sleep, and Physical Activity among Pregnant Women

This project described 24-hour movement behaviors among pregnant women, involving literature reviews, chart reviews, submission of IRB, and primary data collection. Students were responsible for 1) examining differences in objective vs. self-report measures of behavior, 2) identifying demographic, socioeconomic and health predictors of guideline adherence, 3) examining maternal outcomes (e.g., gestational diabetes, plasma glucose) and/or neonatal outcomes, and 4) testing relationships between chronotype and movement behaviors.

 

 

 

And the opportunities at GW never stop! Check out our current research projects at our iMCH Learning Lab here.

 

 

Funded Research Interests

Center faculty members are affiliated with the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) and Healthy Policy (HP) Programs. Faculty are involved with research in a variety of areas, including women’s health; contraceptive access and utilization; teen pregnancy prevention; reproductive health; substance use; HIV policy; gender equity; gender-based violence;  prevention of female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM/C); MCH health services; MCH policy; women’s health policy; promotion of physical activity; digital strategies for promotion of weight management among young adults; and program evaluation and implementation.

 

Faculty and Student Projects 

MCH students can gain research experience in a variety of ways:

  • The iMCH Learning Lab research projects offer students special opportunities to work on cutting-edge research projects that have been specially selected by MCH faculty.
  • Working as research assistants with individual MCH faculty, and other faculty from the Department of Prevention and Community Health.
  • All MCH students conduct their own research project in fulfillment of the Culminating Experience (CE) degree requirement. The CE project is completed over the course of two semesters – for example, pre-work (development of a research concept and detailed proposal) might be completed in a fall semester, while execution of the research project, analysis, and presentation of results may take place in the following spring semester.

Student-Faculty Publications 

Many students have the opportunities to publish their CEs with their advising professors. Check out some of our most recent from our program!

  • Laura Tiffany, Caitlin P. Bailey, Amita Vyas, Melissa A. Napolitano (2023). Do provider communication, race, or other demographic factors predict women’s perceptions of ideal gestational weight gain? Under Review (Maternal and Child Health Journal).

  • Monica Ruiz, Mercedes McMahon, Hannah Latif, Amita Vyas (2023). Masking and distancing in the District: A systematic Observational study of Adherence to COVID-19 Preventive Practices (SOMAD@GW). Under Review (Preventive Medicine Reports).
  • Monica Ruiz, Mercedes McMahon, Hannah Latif, Amita Vyas (2023). Maintaining Adherence to COVID-19 Preventive Practices and Policies: A Systematic Observational Study of Masking and Distancing in the District of Columbia and Other US States [published online ahead of print, 2023 Mar 7]. JMIR Public Health Surveill. 2023;10.2196/40138. doi:10.2196/40138
  • Elizabeth Cassidy, Caitlin P. Bailey, Melissa A. Napolitano, Amita Vyas (2023). Sleep duration and chronotype of pregnant women in the United States: an online cross-sectional survey study. Preventive Medicine Reports. 2023;31:102088. doi:10.1016/j.pmedr.2022.102088
  • Diletta Mittone, Caitlin P. Bailey, Ebony Eddy, Melissa A. Napolitano, Amita Vyas (2022). Women’s satisfaction with telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional survey study. JMIR Pediatrics and Parenting. 17/09/2022:41356. PMID: 36125862