BUFFALO AND SYRACUSE, NY — The Health Foundation for Western & Central New York today announced that Population Health Collaborative has been awarded a grant of $240,000 over two years to support the Fellows Action Network (FAN), a professional collective of graduates of the Health Foundation’s Health Leadership Fellows program. Population Health Collaborative will provide day-to-day support of the FAN by cultivating an environment that facilitates communication, networking, resource sharing and collaborative action among members. These efforts will support the FAN’s goal of leveraging their resources and relationships to create lasting health solutions for the community.
The goal of the Health Leadership Fellows program is to develop and strengthen a network of collaborative leaders from organizations and systems in western and central New York that serve the Health Foundation’s focus populations of young children impacted by poverty and older adults. The FAN was created in 2007 to provide graduates of the Fellows program an opportunity to remain connected and continue working together after completing the program.
Through the FAN, members build upon the work they undertake in the Fellows program, collaborate on new projects, participate in a continuous learning community and become active in other Health Foundation initiatives. Since its inception, the FAN has grown from 99 members to more than 300, reflecting the Health Foundation’s ongoing commitment to building health care capacity in the community.
In recognition of this growth, the Health Foundation issued a request for proposals in November 2019 seeking a community-based organization who could provide supportive resources to meet the needs of the FAN and its members. After a rigorous review of applicants, Population Health Collaborative was selected based on their organizational strengths in coalition building, communication and outreach, and cross-sector partnerships. Additionally, several members of the Population Health Collaborative team are Fellows graduates and FAN members, enabling them to bring a deep knowledge of the network and its needs to this role.
Population Health Collaborative will work collaboratively with the Health Foundation to help assess and address network needs and opportunities, identify common priorities, and cultivate engagement among FAN members. Their team will assist the Health Foundation with educating Fellows on its evolving strategic priorities, and develop opportunities to build on the experience and expertise of Fellows in advancing those goals.
Other support activities led by Population Health Collaborative will include: enhancing communications methods to FAN members, including through a weekly e-newsletter; coordinating FAN governance efforts; working with FAN members to develop programming; and maintaining information on FAN membership, activity, and impact.
Population Health Collaborative’s mission is to improve population health in Western New York by connecting diverse groups and aligning resources and expertise. Their activities focus on forming, aligning and leading coalitions and networks in pursuit of those goals.
Initiatives led by Population Health Collaborative include the Healthy Communities Coalition, a network of organizations from both urban and rural communities. The coalition’s work includes more than 120 programs, efforts and initiatives that address the behaviors that contribute to or could prevent chronic disease. Their team also leads Live Well WNY, an effort to build a culture of health in the community by creating an effective multi-sector movement of programs and initiatives across the eight counties of Western New York.
In order to effectively address the needs of FAN members in central New York, Population Health Collaborative will partner with Alis Sefick of Healthy Communities Consulting, LLC in Syracuse. Sefick is a Fellows graduate who has extensive experience collaborating with other FAN members to support the network and continue projects started through the program. Sefick also has experience in using Results-Based Accountability™ in program evaluation. RBA is an internationally used planning and evaluation method that helps organizations measure the impact of their efforts.
“Population Health Collaborative has a proven track record of building coalitions and bringing people together in support of their shared goals, with demonstrable success,” said Nora OBrien-Suric, PhD, Health Foundation President. “We look forward to partnering with them to leverage those skills for the benefit of the Fellows Action Network, and to seeing how this enhanced support will help FAN members have an even greater impact on improving the health of our community.”
“We’re honored to have been selected to perform this important work,” said John D. Craik, Executive Director of Population Health Collaborative and a Fellows graduate. “The Fellows Action Network is a great community asset and we look forward to working with FAN members and others to help this group continue making a difference.”
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About the Health Foundation for Western & Central New York
The Health Foundation for Western & Central New York is an independent private foundation that advocates for continuous improvement in health and health care by investing in the people and organizations that serve young children and older adults. For more information, visit www.hfwcny.org.
About Population Health Collaborative
The Population Health Collaborative (PHC) is a regional health collaborative that serves the eight-county area of Western New York. Our mission is to “improve population health in Western New York by connecting diverse groups and aligning resources and expertise.” The Population Health Collaborative was initially supported through a number of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant programs, and we have been recognized for our work as a leading neutral convener in our region. www.pophealthwny.org.
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