Positioning for partnerships - Assessing public health agency readiness

Background: Public health organizations are redefining their roles and alig ning their structures with other components of the evolving American health system. Health departments must proactively and strategically plan how to position themselves for the coming pears. Prior to implementing changes in functioning, structure, and/or future strategies, an organization should as sess its internal readiness to commit to creating these substantial alterat ions. Methods: Using a diagnostic tool developed by study investigators, employee s of the Cobb and Douglas Counties Boards of Health were surveyed in order to assess their organizational readiness to enter into a strategic partners hip with Promina Northwest, a not-for-profit hospital network in the Atlant a, Georgia area. Frequency distributions were conducted for each categorica l variable and data were analyzed in aggregate and by job category. Results: The 122 analyzed questionnaires revealed some significant trends. Respondents ranked the six factors having the greatest impact on an organiz ation's ability to change in the following order: leadership, planning, tea mwork, mission, information and operations. Interestingly, this rank orderi ng parallels the perceived strengths and weaknesses of the health departmen ts as determined by the frequency of the most positive responses. Conclusions: Cobb and Douglas Counties Boards of Health have taken many key steps to prepare the organizations for significant proactive changes. Surv ey results emphasized the need for open channels of communication within th e organizations and with the external environment so that effective plannin g can guide the strategic alignment of the health departments with communit y partners.