News

Share Your Knowledge about Common Applications

07 Oct, 2008

Do you know of families in your state or community who use any kind of common application system? If so, we’d like to hear from you. ChampionsInC is spreading the word about these innovative and user-friendly systems.

A common application is known as a single form or on-line application process where you apply for services from multiple agencies without have to answer frustrating duplicate questions. An example of a common application system is Utah Clicks, a site that helps families fill out and submit paperwork electronically for multiple state programs.

If you know about a similar system, please share information via the ChampionsInC discussion forum, or email Ginger.Payant@usu.edu.

The “Youth’s Eye View” of Service Organization

19 Aug, 2008

On July 30, 2008 our sister national center, Healthy & Ready to Work, convened an exciting topical conference call called Youth Involvement – Get YAC’in! The youth panel, facilitated by HRTW Youth Coordinator Mallory Cyr, shared their wisdom about what it’s like to be on a Youth Advisory Council (YAC) and discussed their experiences of leadership.

The input of youth/young adults is critical for the development of effective community-based systems of services for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs. As the next generation of consumers, it is important for them to be active participants in their health and vital partners in the decision-making process that affects their well-being. Having been on the receiving end of services, youth are knowledgeable partners for communities and states in their efforts to ensure that services are organized so that families of CYSHCN can use them easily and are satisfied.

Stay tuned during the next few months as ChampionsInC interviews various youth leaders to give you the “Youth’s Eye View” of coordinated, culturally diverse, community-based services for CYSHCN. After all – who is the system for?

Still a Chance to Win!

05 Aug, 2008

Congratulations to our winners! Ann from Wisconsin, Mallory from Maine, and Jan from Connecticut won a random drawing for a $25 Borders’ Gift Certificate for completing our ChampionsInC e-newsletter survey. A big “thank you” to everyone for taking the time to share your thoughts; we are thrilled to get your feedback.

Don’t worry if you haven’t had a chance to complete the survey yet - you can still win. We will give away two more gift certificates by the deadline, August 19, 2008, so please take a few minutes to participate now!

The survey is available at http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB2282LE5BDSS

Staying in Touch

17 Jun, 2008

Remember the state-level meetings that Champions for Progress sponsored? They were a great way for ChampionsInC staff to keep in touch with the needs and accomplishments of state Title V Directors. Even though those meetings don’t exist anymore, ChampionsInC staff members are working to stay in touch with state leaders and to establish connections with builders of systems of care for CYSHCN at the community level. We are making "getting-to-know-you" phone calls with CSHCN directors and catching up with those we have known for some time.

We extend a big “thank you” to those who already gave us updates and helped us link with community contacts in your state. We hope they - and you - find the e-newsletter and our resource materials helpful. Don't hesitate to let us know if there are ways we can improve!

In case we have not talked with you yet, we look forward to getting in touch with you and hearing about how the community-based systems of services for CYSHCN in your state are improving. We hope state CSHCN directors continue to encourage communities to submit a “community success story” via our website. This is an ideal way to spread the word about your community-based efforts.

Measuring Community-Building Efforts

03 Jun, 2008

Do you want to impress your local city council? How about your state legislators? Are you trying to build on your work and apply for bigger, better funding? Many communities are working hard to better organize services to meet the needs of their citizens, including Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN). Measuring the outcomes of your efforts is often a critical element that is needed to obtain funding to sustain your efforts.

ChampionsInC is currently pulling together some valuable resources for helping communities demonstrate their success. An example of one such resource is Mark Friedman’s book, Trying Hard Is Not Good Enough: How to Produce Measurable Improvements for Customers and Communities (2005). This book contains down-to-earth examples that will help programs or coalitions ask the appropriate questions so that they can gather relevant data and show off their good results in ways that are meaningful to stakeholders and people outside the public health or social services area. The book also covers both program accountability and population accountability.

One valuable resource is an explanation of how to tailor common sense questions such as "How much did we do?" "How well did we do it?" and "Is anyone better off?" to fit your measuring and monitoring strategy. The book also gives tips on how to make your program - and your community-based system of services and supports - even better. Check it out today!

Visit the ChampionsInC website to learn more about measuring your community’s success. We would also like to hear about tools that you’re using to measure your outcomes. Please email cora.price@usu.edu to share your ideas, and we’ll help spread the word.