The following seminar events, resources, and projects have been produced by or in association with the Maryland Family Policy Impact Seminar between August 2008 and August 2009. For seminar actions that occurred prior to August 2008, please visit the Maryland Policy Resources page.
Family Policy Election Guide -- October 2008
In an effort to inform voters about where the two major presidential candidates stand on family-relevant issues, doctoral students in the Department of Family Science at the University of Maryland compiled this family and health policy issues voting guide. The guide presents an objective, non-partisan collection of information comparing candidates on important family/health policies such as national health care, early childhood education, stem-cell research, home ownership, immigration, same-sex marriage, veteran health care, and Medicare. Find the guide at: Family Election Guide.
The Rural Health Roundtable -- October 2008
In October, 2008, the Rural Maryland Council and the State Office of Rural Health hosted a Rural Health Roundtable in Annapolis, MD. The purpose of the Rural Health Roundtable was to develop an action plan to help implement the top strategic priority of the 2007 Maryland Rural Health Plan, which was to increase recruitment and retention of rural health care providers. Please view The Rural Roundtable Summary Report to learn more information about the event and the results of each of the break out sessions.
The Roundtable also offered an overview of Maryland's health care workforce shortages. All presentations given at the October 2008 Roundtable are available on the Rural Maryland Council website here.
The Telehealth Roundtable -- February 2009
In February, 2009, the Rural Maryland Council and the State Office of Rural Health hosted a follow-up to the Rural Health Roundtable. The purpose of this roundtable, which was facilitated by Dr. Bonnie Braun, co-director of the Maryland Family Impact Seminar and Director of the Herschel S. Horowitz Center for Health Literacy in the University of Maryland School of Public Health, was to discuss the feasibility of creating a telehealth consortium.
To learn more about the Telehealth Roundtable, please view the Telehealth Roundtable Report.
Family Influence on Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Among Rural, Low-Income, Preschool Children: A Preliminary Investigation of Factors Associated with Obesity -- March 2009
Children raised in families with low incomes and educational levels are at-risk of food insecurity and inadequate dietary intake, particularly consumption of fruits and vegetables which is often associated with increased risk of obesity. Family Influence on Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Among Rural, Low-Income Preschool Children: A Preliminary Investigation of Factors Associated with Obesity focused on the influence of both mothers and grandmothers on the food intake of young children—a phenomena not extensively found in nutrition literature yet called for at the April, 2008 NIH Conference on Decision Making in Eating Behavior: Interacting Perspectives from the Individual, Family, and Environment. For more information about this UMCP Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension (MAES-MCE)-funded research project, please view the:
MAES-MCE Project- Full Report
MAES-MCE Project- PowerPoint presentation
MAES-MCE Project- Research brief
Plain Language Brown Bag Series offered through the Center for Health Literacy-- March 2009
In an effort to inform producers of policy messages and materials, the Herschel S. Horowitz Center for Health Literacy at the University of Maryland School of Public Health presented a brown bag series on plain language. Plain language, the use of clear and straightforward expression, contributes significantly to health literacy by facilitating the ease with which individuals can find what they need, understand what they find, and act appropriately on that understanding.
The speaker series offered at the Center for Health Literacy addressed the importance of applying plain language to publicly proposed materials. Presentations were given by Joanne Locke, a previous plain language advisor, and Annetta Cheek, Chair of the Board at the Center for Plain Language. These presentations are available through the Center for Health Literacy’s website:
Plain Language: Improving How We Communicate – Joanne Locke
Principles of Plain Language – Annetta Cheek
- To read more about plain language, please visit: http://www.plainlanguage.gov/ and http://www.centerforplainlanguage.org/.
- For information on plain language legislation that would require federal government agencies to write public documents like tax returns, federal college aid applications, web sites, and Veterans Administration forms in simple, easy-to-understand language, please read the:
Plain Writing Act of 2009 (Senate Bill S574)
Plain Language Act of 2009 (House of Representatives Bill 946)
- Other news and events related to plain language can be found on the News and Events section of the Center for Plain Language’s website.
