Maine’s Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs Monthly Learning Series

Sep 16, 2024

Roles & Resilience during Public Health Emergencies (PHEs) - Moving from Stories to Action in Public Health Emergencies

October 1, 2024, 3:30-4:30 PM Please Register Here.

Join us for an insightful webinar on emergency preparedness in Maternal and Child Health (MCH), where we’ll explore the critical role of public health professionals in supporting families and individuals with medical complexities during PHEs. Through powerful stories of lived experience, this session will offer an opportunity to critically reflect on your role in the planning, preparation, and recovery phases of emergencies. Attendees will gain actionable strategies to move from planning to implementation, ensuring that MCH populations are effectively supported in times of crisis.

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to:

1. Center the experience and recommendations of community members through person-centered stories
2. Highlight the lived experience of people living with disabilities and the need for universal planning in emergency preparedness
3. Underscore the need for collaboration with various partners, including members of the MCH population, in public health emergencies to promote equity in planning, response, and recovery.

Mallory Cyr, MPH, is the Senior Program Manager for Children & Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN) at the Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs (AMCHP).

She holds a Master of Public Health in Maternal & Child Health from Boston University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Maine at Farmington.

With over 15 years of experience, Mallory has a deep understanding of the CYSHCN population, honed through work with both the Maine and Colorado Title V programs. She has extensive expertise in national policy initiatives for CYSHCN, including her role as Program Manager at the Got Transition? National Health Care Transition Center. Mallory worked with Colorado's Medicaid program, managing contracts and overseeing the statewide Non-Emergency Medical Transportation benefit.

At Family Voices National, Mallory coordinated projects funded by the HRSA CARES Act COVID-19 response, focusing on telehealth access for CYSHCN. Currently, at AMCHP, she supports the National Coordinating Center on Transition, led the Autism Community of Learners, and had a pivotal role in initiatives related to Public Health Emergency Preparedness.

Mallory’s contributions to disability justice and health equity have been recognized through several awards, including the 2021 Boston University Maternal Child Health Alumnae Award for Outstanding Service and being named one of the 40 Under 40 in Public Health for 2023 by the DeBeaumont Foundation.

In her current role, Mallory manages a national partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics focused on pediatric mental health. She is passionate about meaningful engagement, advancing policy, and applying lessons learned from her personal experience navigating systems for CYSHCN.