Project Director

Michael D. Resnick, Ph.D. - Professor,
Pediatrics/Adolescent Health and Medicine

Mission

The University of Minnesota LEAH program exists to improve the health of adolescents by equipping the next generation of MCH leaders in both academic and public health sectors with the skills for identifying and responding to the emerging health needs of young people, at both individual and population levels. UMN-LEAH addresses five needs: 1) disparities in threats to adolescents' health; 2) deficits in competencies of entry-level providers; 3) lack of providers in all disciplines for lead positions in academics/public health; 4) need for evidence-based strategies particularly for emerging issues; and 5) inadequate use of evidence-based practices.

Guiding Principles

UMN-LEAH shapes its training curriculum and training experiences using four guiding principles:

• All youth have wellness within and, provided with appropriate support and nurture, are capable of healthy development and self-righting.
• Adolescent care, by virtue of the complexities of adolescent development, opportunities and risks, requires a dynamic interdisciplinary approach.
• Diversity in its various manifestations is among our most valuable training resources.
• Promotion of adolescent health at individual and population levels requires leadership, capacity and skill in research, research translation and dissemination, resource development, advocacy, and communications – in addition to expertise in adolescent health and health care.

Scientific and Research Capabilities

During a recent five-year period, UMN-LEAH faculty published 251 articles in peer-reviewed scholarly journals, conducted 296 continuing education presentations to a cumulative audience of 19,000, keynoted two White House-sponsored conferences, and offered technical assistance to 186 entities (22 international; 106 national; 15 regional; 18 states other than Minnesota; 8 Minnesota; 17 local). Faculty research is and has been funded by the National Institutes of Health/NHLBl and NIDDK, Dept. of Health and Human Services/HRSA/MCHB, National Cancer Institute, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Dairy Council, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, MN Dept. of Health, National Institute of Mental Health, and The Kellogg Foundation, among others.

Academic Training Programs

UMN-LEAH offers an exceptional opportunity in interdisciplinary learning, based on educational collaborations and broad-based funding support through partnerships with the Konopka Institute and the Health Youth Development•Prevention Research Center within the Division, with the Division of General Pediatrics, with the School of Nursing/Center for Adolescent Nursing and the School of Public Health. We offer an Adolescent Medicine fellowship (3 years for pediatrics and internal medicine; 2 years for family medicine); nursing (1-3 years); psychology (1-3 years); nutrition (1-3 years); social work (1 year internship); public health/community health (1-3 years). Fellows from all disciplines are trained in research, leadership, advocacy and teaching skills. All participate in a year long Friday afternoon seminar series during one year of fellowship.

Clinical Programs

Fellows have opportunity for supervised clinical training through community-based clinics serving adolescent patients, through Collaborative Office Rounds (twice-monthly case-based learning with interdisciplinary practitioners), and through participation in team-based treatment of eating disorders in the Services for Teenagers at Risk (STAR) Clinic.

Community Health Programs

UMN-LEAH provides access for fellows to community-based programs connected to our program. One example is Prime Time, a federally-funded intervention program (Dr. Renee Sieving: PI) that engages teens living in high-risk circumstances in changing their own behaviors through case management, peer health education training, and service learning. Another example is the Minnesota Youth Community Learning (MYCL) Initiative funded by the Kellogg Foundation, aimed at assisting community collaboratives' efforts to improve high school graduation rates in seven Minnesota communities.

Professional Relationships

Society for Adolescent Medicine
Pediatric Academic Societies
American Dietetic Association
American Psychological Association
Society for Research on Adolescence
American Academy of Nursing
American Nurses Association
American Public Health Association
International Association for Adolescent Health
National Eating Disorders Association
Academy for Eating Disorders

Communications

Website: http://www.med.umn.edu/peds/ahm/home.html
Email:
resni001@umn.edu (Principal Investigator)
sylve001@umn.edu (Education Coordinator)
Address:
LEAH/Division of Adolescent Health and Medicine
717 Delaware Street SE, Third Floor
Minneapolis, MN 55414
Phone: (612) 624-9111 (Resnick) or (612) 626-0162 (Sylvester)