287804
Building from the inside: Clinic board of directors development
Description: The Yucaipa Center for Health and Family Well Being (YCHFW) has the potential to alleviate this strain by primarily addressing the spiritual and physical needs of the Hisapanic community of Yucaipa, California. Concern exists over the clinic's readiness to handle the additional strain. As the Center works toward becoming a free clinic, the need to ensure a solid foundation is paramount. Guided by Holt's Structural Dimension of Readiness, a team of Loma Linda University School of Public Health students conducted a mixed methods needs and assets assessment with the Center's Board of Directors and local organizational scholars. The assessment consisted of key informant interviews with select board members and organizational scholars (n= 7), validation focus groups with additional board members and community health workers (2 groups; n= 20), and a quantitative assessment of the Board members' readiness for change.
Lesson Learned: There was an understanding that organizational change was necessary. Areas of modification included the dynamics and culture among the Board of Directors, the execution of tasks that had been given, and their knowledge of what role members played in the Center's development.
Recommendations: Baseline findings prompted the implementation of a two-day retreat, involving strategies to strengthen the cohesiveness of the Board of Directors. Recommendations resulting from this program may be of benefit to faith-based clinics seeking to strengthen their organizational infrastructure and capacity.
Learning Areas:
Administration, management, leadershipConduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Public health administration or related administration
Learning Objectives:
Describe the roles and positions necessary within an efficient faith-based health center.
Identify methods targeted at increasing motivation and involvement of voluntary Board of Directors of a faith-based clinic.
Keyword(s): Management and Sustainability, Organizational Change
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: As a public health graduate student at Loma Linda University, I have worked with the Yucaipa Center for Family Health and Well-Being and the Hispanic Seventh-day Adventist Church for a year. Iâve helped to develop and implement a 10 hour leadership training to build leadership capacity for preventive health and wellness. Among my interests has been the development of strategies for sustainable interventions in empowering underserved communities to improve health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.