MSW/MPH Spring 2015 graduates present their work at MPH Poster Day

Three MSW/MPH students who are slated to graduate this Spring 2015 presented their final capstone projects at the University of Georgia College of Public Health MPH Poster Day today.  Congratulations on your amazing accomplishments!


Alicia LaFrance, pictured with her husband, Ryan LaFrance, presented "Training First Responders to Recognize Child Abuse and Neglect:  Unexpected Results."

Audry Motlagh presented, "The Importance of Interdisciplinary Collaboration:  Mapping Coastal Georgia's Social and Health Services Assets."

Joelle Pettus presented, "Examining Mental Workplace Wellness and Self Care Practices among Medical Social Workers."

Audry S. Motlagh (Spr ’15) Recipient of MPH Excellence in Health Promotion Research Award

Audry S. Motlagh, a current MSW MPH student slated to graduate this Spring 2015, received the 2015 MPH Excellence in Health Promotion Research Award from the University of Georgia College of Public Health.  Ms. Motlagh was nominated for this award by her mentor, Dr. Matthew Lee Smith, Assistant Professor of Health Promotion and Behavior in the College of Public Health.  Dr. Smith summarized her research contributions as follows:

“Audry has been working with Chatham County (Savannah) for the past few years to develop a county-wide inventory of health- and social work-related services.  The purpose of this inventory was to identify service delivery gaps and opportunities for organizational collaboration to ensure Chatham County residents receive necessary services.  As part of this effort, Audry trained herself to use asset mapping software that can overlay aspects of the population (e.g., race/ethnicity, poverty) with aspects of service delivery.  This asset mapping work has been turned into a report for the County, and Audry is currently writing a publishable manuscript about the process and utility of such technology for strategic planning and partnership development.”  Audry completed this work through the Tisha Abolt Graduate Assistantship through the School of Social Work, which provides financial support to a student working in coastal Georgia.  She worked under the direction of former School of Social Work professor Dr. Michelle Carney, who is now Professor and Director of the School of Social Work at Arizona State University and in collaboration with Dr. Matthew Smith.

“Audry has also worked to write a publishable manuscript about cardiovascular disease and sexual dysfunction among middle-aged and older adult male military Veterans and factors associated with discussing sexual health with their physicians.  This manuscript is currently under review for publication in a scholarly journal.  This work has also revealed a gap in the literature where military Veterans often use VA healthcare services and community-based healthcare services; however, these systems do not seamlessly communicate, which can compromise Veteran health.  Audry has written a commentary about this issue which is currently under review for publication in a scholarly journal.  The results of this work have resulted in Audry presenting at one national conference and two local/state conferences.”  Audry completed this work in collaboration with Dr. Matthew Smith.

Congratulations on these outstanding achievements, Audry!

MSW MPH Program Well-Represented at the Georgia Public Health Association Meeting

On April 13th and 14th, the Georgia Public Health Association held their 86th Annual Meeting and Joint Conference with the Southern Health Association in Atlanta, Georgia.  The University of Georgia's MSW/MPH Program was well-represented at the meeting.

Recent graduate, Mumbi Mwaura, MSW, MPH (Dec '14) attended in her role as Secretary of the Career Development Section of the Georgia Public Health Association.

Audry Motlagh, BS (Spring 2015) presented a workshop on her work titled, "Veteran Health in Georgia:  Strategies for Integrating Community- and Government-Based Healthcare Systems," conducted with Dr. Matthew Lee Smith (Assistant Professor of Health Promotion and Behavior at the UGA College of Public Health) and Dr. Heather Goltz (Assistant Professor of Social Work at the University of Houston-Downtown).

Ms. Mwaura and Ms. Motlagh joined Dr. Trina Salm Ward (MSW MPH Coordinator and Assistant Professor, College of Public Health, Health Promotion and Behavior and School of Social Work) to present a poster titled, "Preliminary Results from a Mixed-Method Evaluation of a Dual Master of Social Work - Master of Public Health Degree Program," co-authored with Dr. Patricia Reeves (Professor of Social Work at UGA).

Alumni Update - Mumbi Mwaura, MSW, MPH

Mumbi Mwaura, MSW, MPH recently joined Project Family, LLC as a contracted clinician.

Project Family is a community health care organization serving children, adolescents, and adults with mental health concerns and substance abuse issues in Georgia.  They provide clinical, family preservation, and wrap-around services, and their team includes psychiatrists, nurses, licensed clinicians, and experienced case managers that collaborate to provide integrative care.  Services are provided in-clinic as well as in-home and in the community.  As a contracted clinician, Ms. Mwaura will provide evidence-based counseling services to children and adolescents with a mental health diagnosis. 

Ms. Mwaura graduated from the University of Georgia in December 2014 with a Master of Social Work - Clinical Concentration, and a Master of Public Health in Health Promotion and Behavior.

When asked if her dual degree training helped her in obtaining this position, Ms. Mwaura noted, "I believe the dual degree helped TREMENDOUSLY.  As soon as I walked into the interview room the interviewer (my now supervisor) could not stop the compliments and was genuinely impressed by what the dual degree could offer to the organization. My public health classes in public policy and healthcare management are helping me understand how the organization runs (including Medicaid, private insurance), and I think I've started realizing the importance of increasing mental health as a real public health issue.  As a result of the job, I'm starting to get interested in mental health concerns in our country.  I'm truly surprised at how my interests have been shaped and continue to change as a result of being in the 'real world.'"

Congratulations Mumbi!

To learn more about Ms. Mwaura, visit her LinkedIn profile.