The Blue Hills Community Health Alliance streamlines regional work towards a shared vision of healthy, resilient, and equitable communities. We maximize the impact of organizations by creating innovative opportunities to collaborate for common purposes.
community health network areas (CHNA)
Community Health Network Alliances (CHNA) are coalitions of public, non-profit, and private sector working together to build healthier communities through community-based prevention planning and health promotion. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) established CHNAs in 1992. Today there are 27 CHNAs encompassing 351 Massachusetts cities and towns. As one of the 27 Community Health Network Areas across Massachusetts, the Blue Hills Community Health Alliance (CHNA 20) is a partnership of 13 communities working together to:
Bring forward the voice of public health in our communities
Engage key stakeholders in health improvement
Identify local and regional health priorities
Design community-based prevention plans to support sustainable change
Track success in achieving healthier communities
chna 20 core strategic principles
As a CHNA, we strive to:
Grow collaboration and sustainable impact
Respond to the needs of our communities through diverse, multi-sector representation
Solve problems through the collective strength of our membership and connect people and information/resources
Hold ourselves accountable for sustainable outcomes through consistent evaluation
CHNA 20 activities
At the core of CHNA 20’s work is convening and connecting organizations working to improve public health. We do that through the following activities:
Collaborative Support
One of CHNA 20’s greatest strengths is our ability to serve as a neutral party in health-related efforts, engaging with a wide range of sectors to tackle public health problems. We not only provide intensive education around collective impact and collaboration models, but also aim to support these efforts on the ground level. We accomplish this through task forces and working groups dedicated to learning more about, and implementing multi-sector, solutions-based initiatives to address, local and regional health priorities.
Learning & Networking Events
CHNA 20 frequently brings together members of the broader community to learn, share, and collaborate on efforts to improve public health in the 13 towns and cities we serve. We provide quarterly general meetings, workshops and trainings, and other learning opportunities around our priority areas throughout the year.
Leveraging Resources
CHNA 20’s role as a regional health coalition has included providing technical and financial support to deserving organizations whose efforts support our mission and vision in our communities. Historically, the coalition has offered grants to support programs, events, and sustainable change projects that lead to positive, enduring, and replicable outcomes on one or more CHNA 20 priority areas. While grant making efforts have been reduced due to changes in DoN funding, CHNA staff continue to provide ongoing education and technical assistance to community partners on a wide range of topics.
funding for chna 20
CHNA 20's initial funding source was through the Determination of Need (DoN) program, which is a community health initiative required and overseen by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH). DoN Funders included: Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Milton, South Shore Hospital, and Steward Health Care. While we no longer receive DoN funds, we continue to partner with these healthcare systems on a variety of local projects.
Support for CHNA 20’s transportation initiative was provided in part by grants from the Tufts Health Plan Foundation, Data Across Sectors for Health (DASH), and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Mass in Motion funding is provided by the MA Department of Public Health.
