With the recognition that social factors contribute significantly to poor health outcomes and unnecessary spending, particularly among low-income individuals, health care (HC) and community-based organizations (CBOs) across the country are entering into partnerships that aim to address the social determinants of health (SDOH). These partnerships are bringing together health systems and CBOs in new ways, building on complementary skills and expertise, and tackling structural and cultural differences between them. As these relationships develop, and other partners look to replicate promising models, there is a growing body of work that can be used inform successful partnerships.
With support from Kaiser Permanente Community Health, the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) and Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) partnered to explore the operational, financial, and strategic considerations required to make these partnerships impactful for consumers, health care providers, and CBOs. This executive summary draws from three unique health care-CBO partnerships and a set of resources to distill critical components of effective collaborations. This information can help refine existing partnerships or guide development of new joint ventures between health care organizations and community partners. This work builds on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded Partnership for Healthy Outcomes, which explored key elements for building effective health care and community-based organization (HC/CBO) partnerships. (author introduction) #P4HEwebinarDecember2023