A community of pediatric care coordinators

Children and youth with special health needs often have several care coordinators and care managers from within different systems. Often this care can be fragmented or duplicative. Wendy Berghorst, coordinated care systems specialist with the Minnesota Department of Health Children and Youth with Special Health Needs (CYSHN) division, helped to spearhead the Pediatric Care Coordination Community of Practice (PCC CoP) in an effort to facilitate communication and collaboration across care coordinators and the multiple systems of care serving youth and families.

“We hope that by participating in the community of practice, professionals can grow their confidence and strengthen their capacity to serve families and youth with special health needs,” says Berghorst. “As professionals increase their confidence and capacity, we believe that these families will receive the quality of care that they want and deserve.”

The PCC CoP was launched in January 2020 under a grant funded by the Minnesota Department of Health. Members of the CoP include care coordinators, primary and specialty care providers, care navigators, school nurses, case managers and social workers. The program was the result of a statewide assessment of care coordination needs in Minnesota in 2015, which revealed that stakeholders across the state desired a mechanism to connect with one another to share best practices and resources for supporting CYSHN and families.

The PCC CoP facilitates communication and collaboration among professionals engaged in pediatric care coordination across Minnesota to better serve children and youth with special health needs. The CoP supports regional convenings, a website, webinars and a quarterly newsletter. Berghorst notes that the PCC CoP website is a one-stop shop for information and resources. A searchable directory of resources includes archived webinars, reports, research briefs, grant opportunities, and links to statewide resources for youth and families. The CoP site also houses a directory of organizations and services in Minnesota serving CYSHN and their families. The CoP statewide conference will be held virtually on May 12, 2022, and will include opportunities for networking, self-care and collective learning. Membership in the PCC CoP is free.

Learn more
Learn more about the Pediatric Care Coordination Community of Practice by visiting mnpedcares.com.