By working together – pooling resources, sharing staff, expertise, funds and programs – across organizational boundaries, public health departments can accomplish more than they could do alone. That is the benefit of resource sharing.
The Center for Sharing Public Health Services provides access to tools, techniques, expertise and resources that support better collaboration and sharing across boundaries. We help public health departments across the country protect and promote the health of the people they serve.
Spectrum of Sharing Arrangements
Looser Integration
Tighter Integration
As-Needed Assistance
Information sharing (e.g., infectious disease testing protocols, health education messaging)
Equipment sharing
Assistance for surge capacity (e.g., assisting with food delivery during a crisis, providing temporary contact tracing capacity)
Assisting with enrolling in public benefit programs
Service-Related Arrangements
Service provision agreements (e.g., contract to provide immunization services, providing grants to community members to implement population health strategies)
Purchase of staff time (e.g., environmental health specialist)
Shared Programs or Functions
Joint programs and services (e.g., shared HIV program, shared data platform)
Joint shared capacity (e.g., epidemiology, communications)
Group purchasing / procurement processes
Joint management and governance of grants
Regionalization / Consolidation
New entity formed by merging existing local public health agencies
Consolidation of one or more local public health agencies into an existing local public health agency
Consolidating health and human services into one agency
Consolidating public health and behavioral health services into one agency