Several of our second-year MCH students attended the 2022 CityMatCH Leadership and MCH Epidemiology Conference in Chicago, IL on September 21-23. More than 600 professionals and students in the Maternal and Child Health field turned out for the 32nd annual CityMatCH conference. What follows is a post from one of the attendees.
By Natalia Machicote, BA
The first day of the conference, I went to a presentation about emergency preparedness and MCH. I’ve always had an interest in emergency planning since undergrad but my passion for MCH exceeded it, so I abandoned the idea. However, it was not until I got to CityMatCH that I was able to see how critical MCH is in emergency preparedness. I had the opportunity to listen to great speakers, as well as talk with peers from the health department in Tennessee. As I heard from them and learned about how Tennessee is serving their MCH population when preparing for emergencies, my mind went straight to Puerto Rico. That previous weekend, Puerto Rico was hit by hurricane Fiona and the aftermath of it was devastating. With my family, friends, and community going through such a hard time, I truly wanted to dedicate my time at CityMatCH to learn how I could assist my island in times of crisis. This opportunity helped me discover how I can combine both of my interests in emergency preparedness and MCH when thinking about my future career plans.
CityMatCH was a great way to get exposed to all these different programs being offered around the nation to better the state and wellbeing of the MCH community. Learning about the studies and data that have come from individuals that have dedicated their careers to eliminating the disparities in MCH was very inspiring.
Natalia Machicote, BA, is a second-year MPH student, concentrating in Maternal and Child Health. She plans to graduate in May 2023. Her interests include reproductive health, birth equity, and emergency preparedness. She also loves working out, music, and eating.
