OAHHS Fall/Winter 2018

12 In a value-based health care system, success is defined not only by financial viability, but by the organization’s ability to fulfill its promised mission to improve the health of its community. Part of the challenge is that health is determined by many disparate factors such as housing and housing location, employment, income, food, education, access to transportation, family support, and more. These are factors outside the hospital’s control, but they impact an individual’s access to care or ability to comply with treatment plans. Individual health care organizations cannot independently do everything that is needed to fulfill their mission commitment to the community. Eighty-five percent of hospitals responding to a recent survey conducted by the American Hospital Association’s (AHA) Center for Health Care Governance indicated their commitment to a population health plan. While a strong majority agreed that population health aligns with their mission, far fewer indicated that they have the financial resources for population health initiatives or programs to address social determinants of health. Furthermore, thinking and operating independently fails to leverage and maximize the opportunities that come with joint efforts and shared resources. These realities are prompting hospitals and health systems to develop partnerships with a wide range of other agencies and community partners. Accountable Communities for Health Working together to achieve the greater good is what Stephen M. Shortell, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Healthcare Organizational and Innovation Research at the University of California, calls “accountable communities for health.” The process involves uniting heath care leadership with common interests and common missions to collectively think, plan, and do in a model of partnership or collaboration. It holds the potential to significantly accelerate the transformation of health care, which is currently a system comprised of organizations working in silos of care, with different, and sometimes conflicting, agendas. According to Shortell, accountable communities for health are “cross- sector organizations that come together to form a governance body or ‘integrator’ entity with the skills and resources to accept responsibility for allocating resources to maintain and improve the health of an entire identified population of community residents.” His definition of an “integrator entity” is similar in scope to a definition of collaborative governance put forth by Jim Rice, Ph.D., a noted international health care expert. Rice defines collaborative governance as “a structured process in which boards with a common interest engage in joint needs analysis, planning and implementation in service of the collective good, and then share accountability for outcomes.” Developing and governing successful community partnerships requires high levels of trust and engagement among community agencies and organizations, coupled with the ability to envision a future where health and health care looks different and is better than it is today. The Principles of Successful Collaboration The AHA’s Center for Healthcare Governance conducted a 2015 Blue Ribbon Panel Study of select Foster G. McGaw Prize Winners, recognized for their exceptional commitment to improving the health and well-being of the communities they serve. The study’s purpose was to examine how these winning organizations work » A magazine for and about Oregon Community Hospitals. ELEVATING COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS TO MAKE A LASTING IMPACT