Section 2. Planning

In this section ...

• 2.1 Definition and Example of a Coalition
• 2.2 Potential Members in a Coalition
• 2.3 Coalition Management
• 2.4 Identifying Local Partners and Individuals
• Also see National Outreach Partners

2.1 Definition and Example of a Coalition

The reasons you would form a coalition around "And Thou Shalt Honor…" or choose to focus the attention and activities of an existing coalition around the series are to promote knowledge of, sensitivity to and action around caregiving issues and to promote "And Thou Shalt Honor…" to your community as a means of obtaining this knowledge.

The series will include stories and illustrate the plight of the caregiver through the experiences of many caregivers from different walks of life. The series is meant to be a lightning rod to rally support, raise awareness, and energize a movement to change the fate of caregivers in this country.

For the purpose of this guide, a "caregiving coalition" is a group of people joined by a common bond to promote discussion and action on issues that affect family caregivers. Coalition members can be (but are not limited to being) community leaders, clergy, health care professionals, and business leaders. Coalitions are generally loosely structured and are managed by appointed leaders. Regular meetings help all members keep up to date with what is going on in the community and within the coalition, and allow the coalition to develop its strategy and plan events.

SAMPLE

The North County Coalition for Healthy Caregivers (NCCHC) consists of 20 members of a rural community. Their community consists of a large aging population, and this coalition represents the concerns for those caring for the elderly. The members include the director of the area agency on aging, a psychiatrist from the local hospital, two nurses from a local nursing home, a physician from the nursing home, clergymen from two different churches in the area, and three community members who have experience caring for an elderly family member. One of the nurses leads and is the primary contact for the coalition. They meet monthly to discuss community needs and issues surrounding caregiving. The meetings take place in the local elementary school and are advertised in their newspaper as well as on their local radio station. The coalition's latest activities include a community survey to assess caregiving needs and a volunteer transportation service for those who cannot drive themselves. Thus, they are a structured and active coalition.

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2.2 Potential Members in a Coalition

To form a coalition, the first question to ask yourself is "Does my community have an existing coalition?" If you are unsure, email us at pbscaregivers@bballard.com. Once you've determined this, next consider "Who in my community would really care enough about caregivers to make a difference in this issue?" Think of who would have a vested interest in and/or has been affected by the issue. Have a brainstorming session with your colleagues and your Public Television Station's outreach coordinator to make this determination. You should cast a wide net, as there are many people from many walks of life who would be interested in your mission. Certain groups of people are very likely to become involved: your Public Television Station, local members of the "And Thou Shalt Honor…" Outreach Partners (cf Section 2.5), elected officials, businesses catering to caregivers' or care recipients' needs, health care professionals, staff of Area Agencies on Aging, members of the faith community, current or former caregivers and others who are or have been affected by caregiving issues. There is no magic number of members in a coalition, but the key is forming a coalition that broadly represents your community. A larger coalition means less work for everyone and it assures that the coalition will be more inclusive and have a broader reach.

There is no substitute for picking up the phone and calling or meeting face to face those whom you want to include in your coalition, but a targeted mailing followed by a phone call might be an alternative approach. You might also try promoting your effort to build a coalition in your local newspaper, on a flyer, or through other ideas discussed in Section 4 of this guide.

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2.3 Coalition Management

Structural Organization

Your coalition should have a steering committee consisting of a small but representative portion of your coalition. 10% of the coalition's number should suffice. The steering committee makes sure that all members of your coalition have their opinions recognized, and that work on certain projects is distributed evenly. The number of positions and the structure of your steering committee will be determined by the size of your coalition. The following structure is a great guideline but in larger coalitions, you might want to consider more positions to help distribute the workload; in smaller coalitions, fewer.

• Primary contact/Chairperson This individual will act as a moderator and contact for your group. The contact person should be able to bring people together and oversee/manage the coalition's activities.
• Outreach Coordinator He/she be will responsible for contacting local organizations and asking for support (such as a notice on a marquee or flyers at a private business). Someone with access to organizations and other local networks would be most suitable for this position.
• Communications Coordinator This person will write press releases and contact local TV and radio stations and newspapers to arrange public service announcements. (cf communications ideas in Section 4). You might ask a local public relations professional to join your coalition and to fill this position.
• Secretary He/she will prepare the meeting minutes and may be responsible for correspondence on behalf of the coalition.

Again, there is no need for formal hierarchy within your coalition. The positions mentioned above are only guidelines to help keep the activities of your coalition organized and to help avoid overlapping (i.e. two people sending two different press releases about the same event to the same newspaper).

Managing Controversy

Caregiving, though an emerging national issue, is also a personal matter. Since your coalition will hopefully consist of people from different backgrounds, different experiences, different religions, different points of view, different professions, etc., differences of opinion are likely to occur. Allow debate within your coalition meetings if it is constructive, but don't put your activities on standby because of controversy. Try to find common ground when there is a disagreement within the coalition. The feelings of coalition members are important to recognize, but the overall mission of the coalition should be the most important item on your agenda. Remember to leave personal or professional agendas at the door when entering coalition 'space'. As soon as your coalition has formed survey its membership. Ask the members what each of them sees as the mission of the coalition, the strength they bring to the mission, the barriers they anticipate confronting within their own organizations and how they can work with or around the barriers.

Developing an Action Plan

The first thing your coalition should do is a community assessment to determine the needs and levels of resources in your community. Check the National Alliance for Caregiving for assessment ideas at www.caregiving.org. Once your assessment is complete, review the ideas presented in this Action Guide and select those that your community wants to enact. Your action plan will include the type of activity you wish to implement, a timeline for implementing it and an impact plan for reaching the greatest audience in your community.

Try to plan three or four activities over the summer and leading up to the airing of the series in Fall 2002. Feel free to modify any of the suggested activities included in this Guide. Your activities around the series should include a major event the week the series airs.

Refreshing your Coalition

Your coalition will thrive when you have a concern, issue, or goal to rally around. Meeting goals, however, is not unlike experiencing a loss. Where do you go next? How do you, as an individual or coalition, maintain your enthusiasm and energy once the series has aired? How do you handle the exhilaration and the letdown of having organized a successful event, for example?

There are three things you can do:

• Celebrate! Revel together in what you have accomplished. Go out to a restaurant or have a pot-luck dinner.
• Feed your spirit. Set aside some time as a team to remind yourselves why you do the work you do. Read poems or stories about caregivers. Invite a caregiver to come and tell you the story of his or her journey. Spend and afternoon being a caregiver by volunteering at a nursing home or respite.
• Plan the next series of activities.

Refreshing your coalition is an integral part of maintaining it over the long term. It's easy to skimp on this, but don't.

Checklist for the Organizer

The following questions are meant to help you or your steering committee guide the coalition:

Awaken a desire to change.

• What is important to you personally about participating in this coalition?
• Do you think that family caregiving is an important issue?
• Is there a need to address caregiving issues in your community?
• Has the coalition performed an assessment to identify community values, norms of care, needs, gaps and barriers to change?
• Do you have a core group that will attract others to the coalition
• Do you have an outreach strategy for involving and orienting new coalition members?

Organization

• Is there a structure in place to plan and implement outreach?
• Is there an action plan for developing community activities?
• Does the outreach plan take advantage of all resources, including the ''And Thou Shalt Honor" series for PBS, outreach staff, Action Guide, National and local outreach Partners, and the Web site?
• Is the coalition tapping into all possible sources of information: local, regional, and national?
• Is there a method in place to track activity?

Train effective leaders

• Are the roles and responsibilities for leaders and other coalition members clearly described?
• Do you have a strategy for identifying, recruiting, and training leaders?

Involve your community

• Is information about outreach accessible to all coalition members (such as through a web site)?
• Is there a promotion plan in place to promote awareness of the coalition's activities?
• Is there a strategy for generating grassroots involvement?
• Is the schedule of activities broad enough to engage a wide variety of individuals and groups including the media?

Action

• Is the coalition's outreach plan realistic, flexible, and responsive to the needs of the community?
• Is the timeline realistic?
• Is the plan in writing, and is it distributed to coalition members?

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2.4 Identifying Local Partners and Individuals

Local partners will be organizations in your community that have an interest in caregiving issues and would want to encourage viewership of "And Thou Shalt Honor…" Whereas National Outreach Partners are national membership organizations, local partners could be any business or organization in your community.

Examples of potential partners:

• Your local Public Television Station
• Local affiliates/chapters of National Outreach Partners
• Health related agencies or institutions
• Aging agencies or institutions
• Community Colleges and Universities
• Secondary schools
• Vocational Schools
• Libraries
• Community Centers
• Women's groups
• Veterans' groups
• Faith-based communities
• Civic organizations
• Ethics committee networks
• Local businesses
• Funeral directors
• Unions

What to look for in a local partner:
There are many qualities to look for in a local partner. The first quality to look for in a local partner is their ability to extend your reach to another segment of your community. All of the above mentioned groups are likely to have this quality. Another quality to look for is a potential interest in family caregiving issues. Educational institutions might have an interest because it would provide an opportunity for school children to learn about or express their experience of family caregiving. A third quality to seek is the ability to disseminate information to the community. When trying to determine good local partners, think Community reach, Caregiving, and Communication. If they are concerned about and involved in the community and/or caregiving issues and can communicate effectively, then they will likely make a good partner. Also, look at the list of National Outreach Partners and see if they have a local office near you.

How to contact potential partners:
Call potential partners at their business. Provide the following information:

• The name of your coalition
• Your mission/goals
• Your most recent projects (if any)
• An invitation for them to become a partner
• The responsibilities of a partner (what you want them to do for you; for example, post a message on their marquee or in their bulletin, donate paper for flyers or include information from you in their materials).
• Explain that they will benefit by your promotion and acknowledgement of their support in your materials or web site.

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