Network Updates

ServingTogether Network Partners

Thank you to those that joined our Community Chat last week. We are appreciative of all our network partners and are excited to share with you the growth of the ServingTogether network in the Mid-Atlantic.

We have included some follow up information from our discussion, along with FAQs that our partners asked on the call. We wanted to share with our entire network the updates on this expansion coming June 23.

ServingTogether network users will now be part of the Mid-Atlantic Community Network in partnership with Unite Us and Kaiser Permanente. This robust network will allow for more widespread support to the region, along with new providers that can support the needs of our entire community.

Exciting additions to come with the expansion:

·     More detailed Service Types

·     You’ll be able to send and receive more targeted referrals

·     New Outcomes to choose from when closing a case

·     You’ll have more detailed resolutions for improved outcomes tracking

·     Provider-to-Provider pathway when sending and receiving referrals

·     You’ll gain the ability to receive referrals directly from other providers

As the expansion date approaches, we wanted to emphasize that we will continue to deliver the same high quality Peer Navigation services you have grown accustomed to. As a partner in delivering this newly imagined network with Unite Us and Kaiser Permanente, we are excited to be able to offer you all of the new abilities and access to expanded provider services that the network will offer in addition to the Peer Navigation process you know and trust.

We will continue to be a no-cost service to you and your clients with our Peer Navigators and Program Managers delivering the same collaboratives, education series, and resource navigation throughout this network. We are still able to offer you reach outside of the National Capitol Region by inter-network referrals to all of the AmericaServes networks across the nation and to partner networks such as Northern Shenandoah Valley and more!

ServingTogether’s commitment to your success as partner organizations, to your clients’ success, and to the growth and stability of our community is unwavering. We are grateful for the new and exciting abilities and for the growth our network will have thanks to Kaiser Permanente and Unite Us and above all, want to make sure that you, our partners, know that you are a part of this conversation.

We’d like to share a few FAQ’s that were asked during the Chat and in subsequent conversations.

All the best,

Amse Heck

Director

ServingTogether, a program of EveryMind

aheck@every-mind.org

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):

1) What’s staying the same?
-Your login information.

-Sending and receiving referrals from the Coordination Center, which will continue to act as a hub for veteran activity, monitoring military-related activities and performance.

-ServingTogether’s focus on serving Veterans, Active Duty, Guard, Reserve, and their families.

-Your relationship with ServingTogether’s dedicated team of Program Managers and Peer Navigators.

 

2) Is this open to non-veterans?
Yes. The beauty of this newly expanded network is that all service providers offering Health and Human Services can be included to better meet the needs of the National Capitol Region’s community, in totality.

 

3) For those providers that do not focus on Veterans, will we know their cultural competency to serve Veterans and Military? Will all providers go through military cultural competency training?
Military competency training won’t be required to those newly on boarding providers. You will be able, in the software, to quickly see which organizations specialize in serving veterans when you look at their organization description. You could easily use that to inform who you to send your provider to provider referrals to if you’d like a provider with specific veteran expertise or experience.

You can also always refer clients to the ServingTogether Coordination Center, just as you have been, for individual coordinated care specific to the unique needs of the military and veteran community.

 

4) Does the expansion to the provider to provider functionality apply only to ServingTogether or also to other providers that can be accessed through Unite Us?
The expansion to provider to provider will be available to all existing ServingTogether providers and also to all of the providers that we are newly on-boarding as a result of the expansion that Kaiser Permanente is driving.

 

5) What about organizations who provide nationwide service? Will they populate when a geographic search is conducted?
If that national organization has a local site, it will show up in the Browse Map. If it does not, it won’t show up in the regional Browse Map, but will show up just in the ordinary drop down.

 

6) Will standards of operations be provided to all users so we have an understanding of expectations of engagement? Will the new non-military serving organization providers have to respond to a referral within a specific period of time?
Yes. Standards of Operations are being developed and will follow the model currently guiding ServingTogether network users.

 

​7) Have you brought on board state and federal partners? And if so, has access to technology been a challenge?
​Yes, we have onboarded state agencies in multiple of the Unite Us networks — VA specific ones, public health agencies, department of human services and so on. ServingTogether and UniteUs would be happy to connect you to some of those agencies already using the platform.

 

8) Will all new network providers offer no-cost services?
Most programs will offer some free services. If anyone offers a program that is not free, it will explicitly state that in their program description.

 

9) How do you vet the legitimacy of a provider outside of the ServingTogether Coordination Center?
Currently, ServingTogether has multi-tired relationships that are developed over time with each of its providers. ServingTogether will continue to build relationships with providers in the military space in this way.

UniteUs has developed an Advisory Committee made up of industry leaders in the region to help vet organizations prior to their joining the expanded provider to provider network. The Committee and UniteUs’s Community Outreach Team will also rely on Guidestar, which is a free resource to help non profits navigate the stability and rating of fellow non-profits: https://www.guidestar.org/search

Next Steps

As the expansion date approaches, here’s what we encourage you to do to prepare:

1. Attend a Provider Refresh Training to learn more about the changes and opportunities that are coming.

2. Access the UniteUs training resources to learn more about how to send and receive direct referrals through the network (password for access: uniteuspartner).

3. Add additional programs to the network that serve the broader population using this form. If you would like to work with your Program Manager to help update your organization’s information and services, please do not hesitate to reach out to:

Christy Kenady – CKenady@Every-Mind.org

Jennifer Watson – JWatson@Every-Mind.org

Melissa Barber – MBarber@Every-Mind.org

We’re excited about expanding the network and continuing to ensure your clients receive timely and streamlined access to care.

Do you have questions? Or want to know more?
Join EveryMind and Unite Us for a community chat with Kaiser Permanente on Tuesday, June 16th at 2 pm to learn more about the vision of this expanded network!

Register Here