Interorganizational network findings from a nationwide cardiovascular disease prevention initiative

ObjectivesTo use network analysis in order to evaluate the effectiveness of interorganizational networks in implementing policy, systems, and environmental interventions for cardiovascular disease prevention throughout the United States.MethodsEvaluators conducted an interorganizational network (ION) survey to examine information sharing and joint planning within organizational relationships in 15 community-based cardiovascular disease prevention partnership networks. Density and betweenness centrality scores at the node- and network-level were calculated for each partnership network using UCINET© network analysis software. Common data patterns were then extracted using a multiple case study format.ResultsNetwork density scores ranged from 0.50 to 1.00 (M = 0.84, SD = 0.14) for information sharing and 0.43–1.00 (M = 0.77, SD = 0.15) for joint planning. Centralization indices ranged from 0.00 to 0.11 (M = 0.04, SD = 0.03), and 0.00-0.17 (M = 0.06, SD = 0.05), respectively. Overall, 73.33 % of communities were successful in meeting their partnership goals.ConclusionsWhen planning and implementing interorganizational networks, high betweenness centrality and more hierarchically structured networks were identified as the most salient partnership characteristics to programmatic success. The network findings were triangulated with previously published qualitative data to provide context. These findings provide valuable insight on how national networks can be designed and leveraged to implement systematic community health projects.     

The enforcement of normalcy in schools and the disablement of families: unpacking master narratives on parental denial

The notion that some parents may be ‘in denial’ is a pervasive theme in dominant discourses on families of children with disabilities. In this analytic essay, I deconstruct cultural and institutional master narratives on parental denial and discuss their role in the marginalization of students with disabilities in schools. I argue that discourses on parental denial privilege the perspectives of those in positions of power and control, leave the practice of ability-based segregation in schools unexamined, and discredit agency among families. Additionally, drawing from existing narrative-based research, I explore alternative interpretations of parents’ responses to their children’s differences, situating these in the framework of critical disability studies.     

Does partnership funding improve coordination and collaboration among early childhood services? – Experiences from the Communities for Children programme

Partnerships among service providers are an important aspect of human service delivery, including in the early childhood and family service sector. There is extensive international literature on factors contributing to partnerships – also termed service coordination, collaboration or integration – but little evidence of partnership outcomes exists where partnerships are a funded and mandatory component of large‐scale programmes. This paper reports findings from an evaluation of the Australian Government's Communities for Children (CfC) programme. Under CfC, partnerships were mandated and funded, and the evaluation findings show that the programme resulted in an increased number of agencies working together to support families with young children (0–5 years) and that working relationships between agencies improved. The effectiveness of these partnerships depended on funding for partnership activities and on organisational and practical factors.     

Social determinants of health in the Human Services: a conceptual model and road map for action

The Social Determinants of Health Framework is well known as a reliable way to understand and predict poor health outcomes and health inequities among individuals who are disproportionately impacted by poverty, discrimination, residential segregation, and other social problems. Since becoming recognized by the public health profession as key to addressing the root causes of poor health among these individuals, integration of social determinants of health (SDOH) interventions in the health-care industry has become a national and global priority. This essay offers a theoretical and practical explanation of the integration of the SDOH in the Human Services by proposing key recommendations and strategies for Human Services Organizations (HSOs) and providers to implement new practices, policies, and research methods that may ameliorate the conditions that create inequities in health.     

Ageing Siblings: Supporting New Care Partnerships

Through the lens of a case study of a sibling caring for an unmarried sister affected by dementia, the article explores a phenomenon of growing social importance, late life care for those ageing without a spouse, partner or adult children. The purpose of the article is to describe the experience of sibling care partnering, to highlight the needs of sibling care partnerships and discuss how the support group model can address some of the challenges faced by this population. This article addresses the caregiving sibling's experience of participating in a support group of adult children caregivers of parents with Alzheimer's. Ultimately, the article argues for the development of services geared specifically for older adult siblings caring for each other for the first time in later life.     

Partnership models within a Maori social‐service provider*

This article is a preliminary case‐study analysis of the partnership arrangements present within a Maori social‐service provider, Te Whanau Arohanui, which, like many Maori organisations, holds as its basis the self‐determination guaranteed under the Treaty of Waitangi. The report explores the key areas of context, history, underlying rationale and impact of partnerships on Te Whanau Arohanui. It also explores the tensions inherent within partnerships built between state‐sector and Maori organisations. It argues that power imbalances and cultural values cannot be ignored in shaping outcomes within a political/economic and organisational context.     

Legitimacy and the Role of UK Third Sector Organizations in the Policy Process

This paper explores the legitimacy of third sector organizations in the policy process in the United Kingdom. It draws on empirical research to examine how legitimacy is defined, both by third sector organizations and by those they target within government. The paper argues that while many third sector organizations give high priority to political forms of legitimacy—in the sense of participatory structures and accountability to members and beneficiaries—government is generally more likely to give priority to technical forms of legitimacy, e.g., the quality of research and the ability to implement policy. Nonetheless, political legitimacy is still important, first because this is the form of legitimacy that third sector organizations claim for themselves and second because, as government gives way to governance with an increase in partnerships and collaboration, the dilemmas faced by third sector organizations in achieving political legitimacy are being faced on a broader canvas.     

公私伙伴关系的运行方式研究

公私伙伴关系是政府部门与民营部门之间的契约关系。文章分析了公私伙伴关系的经济理论及运行方式,论述了我国实行公私伙伴关系的必要性。     

Partnerships in Transition: Managing Organizational and Collaborative Change

Despite the abundance of literature on collaboration, very little attention is devoted to exploring the how partnerships transition over time. This article reports the findings of a study that examined how a mature partnership adjusted to a new administrative team while moving forward with a strategic plan to advance the partnership's mission. Key informant interviews revealed that when stable leadership is not present during transitional phases, the broker organization's capacity to facilitate the collaborative effort will be limited when priorities shift toward maintaining its organizational capacity for survival instead of the collective goals of the partnership.     

基础教育公私合作伙伴关系现象解读

从世界范围看,普及中小学教育的路途并不顺畅:公立学校未能充分满足人们对学校教育的需要,私立学校参差不齐的服务质量愈益引起人们的担忧。因此,公私合作伙伴关系(PPP)被视为摆脱这一僵局的有效途径,其经济和政治含义亦成为广泛争论的热点问题。赫希曼的"退出"和"呼吁"概念可用于界定PPP教育供给模式的经济和政治特征,这一概念化过程有助于破解市场和社会的作用对教育供给和教育质量产生的影响。