Responding to COVID-19: An Activated Network with Health Collaboratives in Action

This brief outlines how regional health improvement collaboratives have the capabilities to build key partnerships and create answers quickly during a crisis, including taking swift action to support key stakeholders responding to the emergent community needs resulting from COVID-19.

These regional entities are critical to identifying urgent and unmet needs, convening stakeholders across healthcare and other sectors, building will among local leaders, and acting quickly to implement solutions that are based on data and evidence, carefully measured, and are watchful of quality and safety.

The brief highlights the plans and processes Washington Health Alliance members developed – from setting up testing centers to establishing surge hospitals and delivering personal protective equipment to healthcare workers – set a precedent for regional health improvement collaboratives across the country to respond to their own communities’ needs and to do so quickly.