Community Education
Community education programs provide health educators and researchers with the most direct link to those affected by a medical, wellness or social issue. This hands-on involvement with consumers gives our public sector and non-profit clients the ability to easily reach targeted populations.Commonwealth Medicine education and training consultants, with the support of the University of Massachusetts Medical School, work with clients to develop the most effective and appropriate curricula for each initiative. We combine our knowledge of best practices with specific research gathered from community input and other insight to develop programs specially designed to meet each client's educational goal. Sensitivity to and an understanding of learning styles, as well as diverse ethnic, demographic and cultural backgrounds is central to our work in the community, and we routinely translate our community education programs and materials into multiple languages.
The depth of our experience is illustrated by a sampling of the projects we have successfully designed and implemented. Our capabilities continue to grow with each new partnership and initiative.
Our community education programs within the Center for Health Policy and Research include:
- The Office of Community Programs teaches adolescents about sexually transmitted disease prevention and the importance of routine doctor visits, assists schools in developing dental programs, and trains family members and friends to serve as medical interpreters.
- The Massachusetts Area Health Education Center Network has centers in Pittsfield, Springfield, Worcester, Lawrence, Boston and Brockton that provide a wide range of community educational programs.
- The Center for Adoption Research trains families of foster care and adoptive children in parenting skills.
In addition, the Center for Mental Health Services Research trains mental health clubhouse members in peer-directed services.