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BACKGROUND: In 2009, North Carolina (NC) was one of four Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Negotiated Agreement Pilot State programs, funded to build synergy and reach to improve selected health outcomes. In the three years of the project, NC built systematic, coordinated efforts within its Chronic Disease and Injury (CDI) Section to approach its work in a more integrated manner. In 2011, NC was funded through CDC’s Coordinated Chronic Disease and Health Promotion Project to expand coordination to strategically address CDI prevention. We describe lessons learned from the past five years of maximizing effective coordination within the CDI Section.
METHODS: The CDI Section created small working groups of staff from across the section, called Communities of Practice (CoPs). The CoPs work to facilitate communication and coordination across the section in the areas of: education and communication, healthy communities, health data, health systems, and policy and environment change. Using the CoP infrastructure, the CDI Section developed a burden document, created geographic information system-generated Health Needs Index maps, and prioritized collaboration strategies for the NC Chronic Disease, Injury, and Health Promotion State Plan.
RESULTS: The process of coordinating has strengthened the state’s CDI surveillance and programmatic infrastructure. The Education and Communication CoP strengthened capacity for evidence-based health communication to further coordination. The Healthy Communities CoP improved coordination between state and local efforts on healthy community strategies. The Health Data CoP improved the availability, knowledge and use of surveillance data. The Health Systems CoP coordinated health systems/quality improvement initiatives, and facilitated cross program referrals The Policy and Environmental Change CoP increased the knowledge, skills and communication on evidence-based intervention supporting healthy environments and behaviors. With the Health Needs Index maps, the CDI section identified hot spots of disparities that were shared with partners to develop plans to address inequities.
CONCLUSIONS: Internally, the CDI Section has brought programs and branches out of their siloes to focus on more data-driven and coordinated prevention efforts that cut across health outcomes. By encouraging internal collaboration, the CDI Section can better engage external partners in a coordinated way crossing over their siloes to increase the state’s impact on health disparities. By increasing the synergy and reach of all partners and stakeholders, the CDI Section can focus on more effective prevention and improved health outcomes.