City of Magdeburg and Magdeburg University Medical Centre launch new scientific collaboration
Focus on early help and school entry examinations
The city of Magdeburg and Magdeburg University Medical Centre have agreed on closer collaboration between science and practice as part of a cooperation agreement. The aim of this agreement is to strengthen public health. In the area of child and youth welfare in particular, new concepts are to be trialled, evaluated and tested for their sustainability through specific research projects. The Institute of Social Medicine and Health Systems Research at Otto von Guericke University (ISMG) will be in charge of coordinating these projects and transferring the scientific findings into practice.
Photo: Prof Dr Daniela Dieterich, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, and Dr Ingo Gottschalk, Magdeburg City Councillor for Social Affairs, Youth and Health, with the signed cooperation agreements. Photographer: Laura Thümler, State Capital Magdeburg
"Our collaboration creates a valuable bridge between science and practical application in the field of public health.Together, we want to ensure that the population of Magdeburg benefits as much as possible from new scientific findings.An initial focus has thus been placed on our youngest Magdeburg residents and their families," says Prof Dr Daniela Dieterich, Dean of the Magdeburg Faculty of Medicine.
Dr Ingo Gottschalk, Magdeburg's Councillor for Social Affairs, Youth and Health, emphasises: "This cooperation offers us the opportunity to further develop our administrative practice on a scientific basis and to take targeted measures that meet the needs of our citizens.In particular, we can offer early support for health promotion, screening and prevention and promote health in our city."
Two projects on the topics of early help and school entry examinations are at the centre of the cooperation at the start.As part of the early help programme, the city of Magdeburg supports pregnant women, single parents and families with children aged 0 to 3 years in order to promote the healthy development of children."The aim of our research is to use the evaluation of the programme documentation to find out more precisely which services are provided to which people and with what level of success. In addition, interviews will be conducted with family midwives and the relevant groups of people in order to determine the quality and potential for expansion of this service from the perspective of those directly involved," explains Prof. Dr Enno Swart, the responsible project manager at the ISMG.
In a second project, the aim is to analyse the school entry examinations over a period of several years to determine the above-average support needs of all school starters in the city by neighbourhood, social characteristics of the families and migration status.This also offers researchers the opportunity to analyse the effects of the coronavirus pandemic and, if necessary, draw lessons for future crises.
The scientific knowledge gained will be used to transfer it into the practice of social medicine and public health and to help the city to better understand where vulnerable groups are located, which specific support measures are suitable and how existing measures can be scientifically evaluated in terms of their effectiveness.
"The cooperation agreement will establish a local network of actors and institutions that will implement applied research with a sustainable impact on public health," emphasises Prof. Christian Apfelbacher, PhD, Director of the ISMG."This will strengthen both the practice of the Public Health Service (ÖGD) and academic social medicine and public health."
Contacts:
Prof. Dr. Dr. Christian Apfelbacher, Director at the Institute of Social Medicine and Health Systems Research at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, phone: +49-391-67-24316, christian.apfelbacher@med.ovgu.de
Prof. Dr. Enno Swart, Institute for Social Medicine and Health Systems Research at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, Phone: +49-391-67-24306, enno.swart@med.ovgu.de