Strategic Partnership Sessions

The Office of Performance Review (OPR) will conduct Strategic Partnership Sessions with HRSA grantees from communities and States, to explore the collective effectiveness of HRSA funded programs, and promote partnerships and facilitate greater collaboration among HRSA grantees in addressing priority health needs. HRSA envisions that bringing together HRSA grantees and external partners for strategic discussions will result in a strengthening of the healthcare “safety net.”

Strategic Partnership Overview

Essential to a successful Strategic Partnership Session is a structured but flexible and creative approach to meet the needs of the communities and States. Existing community and State health indicators and health plans will often serve as the starting point for discussions and determine the focus of the session. For some communities and States these sessions will be the first opportunity for grantees to get to know each other and explore possibilities for working together on common health issues. In others, where grantees have a history of working together, these meetings can provide new energy and help to focus collaborative efforts. The HRSA team will work closely with grantees to frame the meeting appropriately for the community and State partners.

By participating in the Strategic Partnership Sessions, HRSA grantees will gain insight into the HRSA programs and funding received by their State or community and how program requirements and guidelines interconnect and complement each other. By creating partnerships with other HRSA grantees, the grantee has the opportunity to increase its available healthcare resources and contacts within the community and State, tap into HRSA’s expertise and provide HRSA feedback on its programs and policies.

During the session, HRSA grantees will be asked to provide an overview of their HRSA funded program, share information on the healthcare environment and public health priorities, and identify effective, collaborative strategies to improve the overall health of populations living within these communities and States. These sessions provide an excellent opportunity for participants to ask, “How can HRSA funded programs and external partners work together on health issues of common concern?”

Through the partnership sessions, participants will:

• Explore partnering opportunities between HRSA and the communities and States to:
  • Improve the performance of HRSA funded programs;
  • Support and build upon current health initiatives; and/or
  • Focus on key health issues;
• Discuss the collective HRSA investment in the each community or State;
• Identify synergistic practices across HRSA funded programs;
• Solicit feedback about the impact of HRSA policies on program performance; and
• Assist and inform HRSA decision-makers.

A Strategic Partnership Session will typically consist of a Kick-Off Meeting, Partnership Session and Follow-up activities. It is expected that outcomes from these sessions will vary depending upon the group composition, the existence of any previous collaborative efforts, and the focus of the partnership session. Results may come in the form of creating new relationships/partnerships throughout communities and States; bringing more clarity to issues facing a community or State; or developing specific action steps related to a key health initiative or issue. All of these outcomes are valued by HRSA and will serve as an opportunity to improve and strengthen the “safety net” within communities and States.