Learning from the Field: Exploring Service Integration in Public Human Service Organizations

ABSTRACT

There is growing interest in finding ways to improve the integration of human service programs in order to improve client services. This unique learning case provides the following perspectives: the historical context of different efforts to promote service integration in the U.S. over many decades; two works-in-progress to reflect the trial-and-error approach to fostering greater service integration; the experiences of a suburban-rural county human service agency seeking to promote bottom-up integration through integrated case management across various public organizations; and the experiences of a different suburban-rural county demonstrating a top-down approach to reducing the silos across multiple divisions in an integrated health and human service organization. The case concludes with multiple discussion questions.

KEYWORDS:

• service integration
• bottom-up
• top-down
• works-in-progress
• organizational challenges

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.