5.1 Goal
Pennsylvania will develop more formal communication paths among and through the existing LTSS infrastructure at all levels. Until the NWD planning process, there was no formal communication at the state oversight level. The NWD and BIP projects started the process. Interagency meetings and leadership teams from BIP and NWD have created informal paths of communication that work well.
Ultimately, the proposed Long Term Care Council will be accountable for communication among agency leadership and the Governor’s office. However, agency leaders need not wait for the creation of the Long Term Care Council. They are already participating in standing meetings and are committed to moving forward. This is evidenced in the fact that leadership, Deputy Secretaries and Bureau Chiefs, especially in LTSS silos beyond the aging and physical disability communities, encouraged their stakeholders’ participation in the NWD planning process. PA Link staff will continue to act as the locus of regular communication among agencies and with stakeholders.
Currently, at the regional and local levels, PA Link Service areas handle communication among stakeholders in different ways. Each Service Area determines how it will facilitate
communication among its partners and with the state. As part of the information technology platform solution, Pennsylvania will develop a shared, common platform for intra and inter Service Area communication. This will allow for faster, more consistent communication among NWD/PA Link stakeholders.
The NWD implementation project has its own communication plan as part of best practices in project management. Regular project team leadership calls, project update emails and published reports all contribute to the ongoing conversation among agencies, organizations, stakeholders and consumers.
5.2 Action Plan for Communication Platform
5.2.1 Look at Current Practices (Months One through Four)
The project team will review communications platforms and practices used by all Service Areas to determine the best way to ensure communication within and among Service Areas. This will include surveys and discussions at regularly scheduled partner meetings.
5.2.2 Select Best Platform (Months Five through Six)
The project team will synthesize all input and develop a requirements list to select a statewide technology platform for communication and statewide guidelines and best practices. The requirements and practices will be provided to PA Link Partners for review and concurrence. Based on the requirements, the PA Link will build communications technology into its
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technology plan. (If the platform is part of the PA Link/NWD program management software, the implementation dates will be concurrent.)
5.2.3 Implement and Train (Months Seven through Twelve)
Communication practices and platforms will be implemented and tested in each Service Area. Training will be provided through current PA Link Partner education channels. Required practices will be included in updated PA Link partner agreements.
5.3 Group Responsible
The NWD project team will facilitate meetings and training, gather necessary information and coordinate with stakeholders. The NWD project team may engage an outside organization to assist with facilitation, selection and training.
5.4 Target Dates
The target dates for tasks are listed in action items. 5.5 Potential Barriers
The main barrier is skillfully managing change. Partner communication was identified as an area of interest in the outreach process. This barrier can be overcome by including stakeholders in decision-making and by effective training and implementation.
5.6 Outcome Measures
The communications platform project success will be measured by its adoption and use by NWD partners. A longer-term measure will be used via a survey. During the NWD planning process, PA Link partners were asked to rate communication effectiveness. A follow-up survey one year after the implementation of the communications platform will measure its usefulness and effectiveness for PA Link partners.
5.7 Budget
The budget impact for this goal is moderate. The PA Link may engage the services of an outside organization to facilitate meetings and trainings and to develop training materials.
5.8 Priority
This is a high priority item. Though communications are essential, existing PA Link Service Areas have access to email and other basic communications services. The implementation of the platform will increase speed, accuracy, timeliness and effectiveness.
Governance Summary
Pennsylvania has an organizational structure in place to implement a No Wrong Door approach to accessing LTSS. It does not have a program management platform, coordinated outcome and quality management or formal interagency oversight across all silos. The NWD planning process provides the blueprint for closing these gaps.
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Many stakeholders in the NWD Planning Grant stakeholder sessions did not know about the PA Link or were not accurate in their understanding. Even stakeholders from contiguous counties had widely varying levels of partner participation and program knowledge. This speaks to both a branding and outreach challenge within the PA Link.
As noted earlier in the report, Pennsylvania opted to implement a distributed ADRC/NWD approach that features existing LTSS agencies and providers partnering in the system to provide NWD services. This makes the best use of existing resources and prevents duplication of service. However, this approach requires an entire network of providers to opt into the program for it to work in a consistent manner. Collaborative ventures require constant, persistent communication of value, mission and message. Current communication effectiveness varies widely among counties.
Pennsylvania has two main goals based on the ACL/CMS/VHA requirements for public outreach and links to key referral sources: