CIN Community,

During Black History Month we remember the connection between Black history in America and the causes of health disparities that we see today – people who have been historically prevented from reaching their full health potential by discrimination, abuse, disenfranchisement, intergenerational trauma, and more.

Today, Black Californians pursue good health and health care and want the health system to do its part. This is what a California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) study revealed after surveying 3,325 Black Californians’ experiences of racism and the influence it wields over their health care and outcomes. The resulting report, Listening to Black Californians: How the Health Care System Undermines Their Pursuit of Good Health, is one of the largest efforts to date focused on the health care experiences of Black Californians. The report offers policy actions and practice changes at the clinical, administrative, and training levels that policymakers and health system leaders can take to improve care.

Thanks for reading and if you ever have feedback or resources that would benefit the CIN community, please let us know!

Effectively integrating equity into health care improvement efforts is a key focus of CIN. A reminder that the CIN toolkit offers concrete, practical approaches and resources to help health care organizations — including those that provide, pay for, or support primary care — increase quality improvement efforts that center racial health equity.

The toolkit can help organizations assess their efforts to date and plan further improvement work. It provides a “roadmap for improvement” with seven opportunities for practical application, case studies, and resources from across the field.

Arcata House Partnership, a CIN partner organization, provides permanent housing, emergency shelter, rapid rehousing, case management, and other services to individuals and families who are homeless and/or hungry in Humboldt County. AHP recently received $70,000 for a program in which unhoused individuals will receive formal training to work in the field of social services and assist others experiencing situations like theirs. The training will begin in February and effectively create a pipeline of staff with first-hand experience.

“We’re just so thrilled at the impact this training will have on our community,” shared Darlene Spoor, AHP executive director. “When resources are limited, we need to be creative about ways to transform the lives of those willing to put forth the effort to change their course for the better.”

AHP operates the only Safe Parking Program in Northern California and has proven the value of including this option for homeless residents. AHP also runs an Extreme Weather Shelter during the winter.

A crown jewel of AHP’s services is The Grove – a motel that was converted into permanent affordable housing with case management and other support services. Watch three short videos on this inspiring community story!

(Pictured is Coast Central Credit Union's James Sessa and AHP's Darlene Spoor.)

Contracting to Align Health and Social Care Ecosystems: A Webinar Series Sharing Leading Practices

As health care and social services providers continue to partner more and more, community-based organizations (CBOs) and community care hubs (CCHs) can experience challenges entering contracting arrangements with the health care sector.

A recent webinar series offers a deep dive into the essential elements of contracting and leading practices from the field on how to design the payment structure, how to define core activities, and how to operationalize contracts.

The Enhanced Care Management (ECM) benefit, launched in 2022 as part of CalAIM, aims to provide comprehensive care coordination for Medi-Cal members with complex health needs, including through the integration of social services. Medi-Cal managed care plans, health care providers, and community-based organizations have been challenged by ECM implementation. CHCF gathered representatives to discuss solutions for their top concerns, such as establishing partnerships, developing workflows, and ensuring a trained workforce.

People experiencing homelessness are at particular risk of losing Medi-Cal coverage since many may not have a regular, reliable mailing address at which to receive coverage redetermination paperwork. This toolkit from Homebase equips service providers, people experiencing homelessness, health enrollment navigators, and communities with the resources to help keep current Medi-Cal members covered. A link to an October webinar is included. Produced by Homebase, a nonprofit dedicated to preventing and ending homelessness.

The Wellness Coach role is a new, certified position to increase California’s overall capacity to support the behavioral health needs of our youth. It is designed to help build a larger and more representative behavioral health workforce. Wellness Coaches will offer non-clinical services that support youth behavioral health and well-being, such as wellness promotion and education, screening, care coordination, individual and group support, and crisis referral. This state grant program will help employers at educational institutions and school-based and school-linked health and behavioral health agencies to recruit and employ Certified Wellness Coaches.

Nationally, approximately three million people have or have had an opioid use disorder — including both prescription opioids and illicit drugs. Federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), which provide critical services to underserved and historically marginalized communities, are uniquely positioned to provide opioid treatment services. This report explores opportunities to provide medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) at FQHCs. It outlines strategies at the health center, state, and federal levels to support FQHCs in increasing MOUD access. See also a case study series that examines how four FQHCs in various settings are integrating MOUD treatment into clinical practice.

Health care providers can be especially challenged by clients with complex medical and social needs and might be surprised to learn how community health workers (CHWs) are an important strategy for addressing the needs of this population. CHWs have more time to develop relationships with clients and can provide coaching and care coordination and management, as well as assistance with adhering to treatment plans, connecting individuals with social supports, and health education. This short Q&A from the Center for Health Care Strategies helps to better understand the CHW policy landscape and considerations for policymakers seeking to advance this care model.

Managing to Leading (M2L) is a yearlong, transformative leadership program for mid-level clinicians and administrative staff from community clinics in Los Angeles. The no-cost program equips emerging leaders with the knowledge, resilience, skills, and confidence to effectively guide change within organizations and improve health care delivery across the safety net.

Sponsored by Cedars-Sinai and administered by Healthforce Center at UCSF, the proven curriculum includes in-person, experiential seminars; an applied learning component; and facilitated peer coaching. See details on the program structure and seminar dates, participant eligibility and requirements, and the application process.