Community Level Change Inform State Level Policy Approaches

Background

YMCA of the USA and its CTG sub-recipient YMCA of Greater St. Petersburg, took a systems change approach to their policy work to  develop clinic-to-community linkages between health care providers and community-based organizations.  They did this by expanding the reach of the YMCAs Diabetes Prevention Program into communities experiencing health disparities to reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes.  This work is paving the way for and YMCA of the USA’s Statewide Pioneering Healthier Communities sub-recipient, Florida State Alliance of YMCAs, to create state level changes.

Methods

Sub-recipients facilitated access to YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program by developing relationships with healthcare providers in the community and state.  After completing the Clinic-to-Community Assessment, the teams identified opportunities to strengthen clinic-to-community partnerships promoting chronic disease management and prevention to support those at risk of living with chronic disease.

Outcomes

As a result of the sub-recipients efforts, over 300 physicians are now partnering with the Y to provide referrals to YMCA’s Diabetes program.  This means over 6,000 individuals in the target group gained access to clinic-to-community linkages providing access to interventions that reduce the incidence of type two diabetes.

Conclusion

Sub-recipients reported that the Clinic-to-Community Assessment was the first step in building relationships and bridging knowledge and gaps between CBOs and providers, but underlying health care system factors limit referrals between providers and CBOs.  Promising strategies tested by sub-recipients are implementing referral prompts for physicians, providing referral resources for patients and addressing privacy issues.  The community level efforts are enhancing conversations and opportunities for state-level change.