RD617 - Health and Human Resources Transition Report


Executive Summary:
The structure of the Health and Human Resources Secretariat in Virginia includes 11 agencies as shown in Figure 1 (see page 1 of the report). These agencies traditionally function as silos. The challenge this presents is that our citizens do not fit into our organizational and program structures. A recipient of services might be a child who must be considered in the context of a family structure, who in turn must be considered in the context of a community. Family structures and community structures are highly variable and in some cases largely absent. In this situation, the programs have been developed largely by federal design to address specific issues.

According to the Stanford Social Innovation Review in Winter 2011, the United States ranked 18th of 24 industrialized nations in high school graduation rates, with more than one million drop-outs each year despite the large number of organizations and enormous amount of money spent on education. The need for coordination and collaboration was emphasized and the concept of collective impact was espoused as a potential solution. Collective impact lays out 5 conditions that must be met to optimize outcomes (see Figure 2 on page 2 of the report).