Organisation
Children’s Health Council (CHC), founded by Dr. Esther B. Clark in 1953. She was one of the first female paediatricians on the Peninsula. CHC’s mission is to eliminate social and emotional learning obstacles for children and their families, regardless of location or ability to pay. CHC has evolved over the years to meet the community’s needs.
It currently includes two schools, two clinics and a strong community education program. The Esther B. Clark school is a therapeutic school that supports students with severe emotional dysfunction in Grades 2-10. The Sand Hill School is a private school that serves students in grades K-8 with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities.
It was established in 2011. The Centre and Community Clinic offer multiple programs, including The Glen Elliott ADHD Program and The Children’s Health Council Initiative and The Ravenswood Initiative. They also have The Early Support Program for Autism (ESPA) in partnership with Stanford. The Executive Functions Coaching Program is another program offered by the Centre and Community Clinic. CHC serves around 1800 children and their families each year in its schools, clinics, and community education.
Situation
CHC is an evolving organisation that is complex. CHC underwent a rebranding in 2013, which included a new logo and external signage, website, collateral, messaging and a physical plant remodel. CHC is not well-known because it serves only 5,000 families in the Peninsula and South Bay. How can CHC be more visible? How does the community perceive CHC?
Project Objectives
CHC believed it could benefit from the perspective of “outsiders” who can examine its culture and practises. They wanted to know what the community thought of their schools, clinics, and community education programs. CHC wanted to uncover the answers to these questions in order to be more creative and effective in achieving its goals.
What’s the perception of CHC among the community?
- How can CHC be made more visible?
- How can CHC be thought leaders in the community and establish itself as thought leaders?
Overview of the Project children’s health council
The ACT team interviewed 16 stakeholders and community members. These included board members, CHC division head, Sand Hill School parents and parents from the local area. ACT created surveys for professionals (those responsible for referring families to CHC) based on the interviews. ACT then applied and analysed the survey results to gain a better understanding of the perceptions of CHC in the community and to identify ways that CHC can be more visible to the target audience.
Principal Recommendations Children’s Health Council
- In San Mateo and Santa Clara, focus your efforts on mothers and referring specialists
- Encourage supporters to spread the word on CHC by joining Galvanise
- To increase CHC knowledge and drive referrals
- Contrary to the outdated perception that CHC is more costly than other options
- To increase engagement, you can use social media and website education content to increase your efforts
- To attract more community members and referring professionals, strengthen the community education program
- More strategic partnerships
