Organizational learning collaborative aligns cross-sector regional public health commitments

Healthy Monadnock 2020, a community health improvement partnership in Southwest New Hampshire, formed an Organizational Champions Learning Collaborative (OCLC) to increase the commitment to improve health by organizations in the Monadnock region.  Cheshire Medical Center of Keene, NH, the “backbone organization” for HM 2020, recruited 12 public, private, and nonprofit organizations to form the OCLC. OCLC member organizations explore ways to make environmental and policy changes designed to enable people to make the healthy choice the easy choice. The OCLC uses a collaborative process designed to lead up to each member organization signing a Community Results Compact that commits them to make specific policy or environmental changes including ways to measure successful implementation of the changes. In addition, in the compacts they identify one or more of the 27 HM 2020 community health outcome indicators their planned changes are expected to contribute to improving. The initial OCLC focus is on workplace wellness initiatives that will mostly benefit employees of OCLC member organizations. In addition, HM 2020 staff has begun discussing other types of improvements with some OCLC members, such as a city government, a YMCA, and the Chamber of Commerce, that can leverage their role in the community for health improvement impact that goes well beyond their own employees.  The OCLC emphasizes peer support and learning among the member organizations, with facilitation, structure, and some supporting research provided by HM 2020 staff.