Building true collaborations. A senior support network illustrates a successful partnership of healthcare and social service providers

The relationship between Catholic Social Services (CSS) of the Diocese of Scranton and Mercy Health Partners--Northeast Region, which joined forces last year to develop a senior support network for residents of Wilkes-Barre and the Borough of Kingston, PA, illustrates how collaboration grows out of cooperation and coordination of services. The network is a project of the Neighborhood-Based Senior Care National Initiative, which works to develop collaborations between Catholic health systems and Catholic Charities agencies to help poor communities meet the needs of aging persons. Barriers to successful collaboration may stem from cultural misunderstandings, differences in organizational stability and decision-making processes, attitudes toward money, and even professional vocabularies. Organizations that trust and respect each other can overcome these barriers. The Wilkes-Barre project began simply, but its success established a pattern of cooperation between CSS and Mercy Health Partners, which led to further coordination of referral programs, development of community health profiles, and cross-organizational training. After nine months on the Wilkes-Barre project, CSS and Mercy Health Partners are now developing a Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE). Effective collaboration between healthcare providers and social service agencies is a long, sometimes difficult, process that requires organizational commitments of time and resources. Organizations must not yield to the temptation to take shortcuts to achieve short-term gains.