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Learning Collaboratives as a Community-Organizing Strategy to Improve Heart Health
TOOLS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE — Volume 23 — August 20, 2026
PEER REVIEWED
This image consists of 6 circles arranged like a bicycle wheel, with a hub and 5 circles at the end of the spokes. The hub is labeled community members with a schematic of a heart. The circles at the end of the spokes are labeled community partners, health care organizations, health professionals, local/state public health organizations, and vetted new partners.
Figure 1. The Healthy Hearts Learning Collaboratives, Virginia, a model for a learning collaborative.
This flowchart shows 21 steps to a timeline. Meetings 1 and 2: build report. Meet and greet, sharing about heart health experiences and reasons for being there. Meetings 3 and 4: CVH themes and barriers. Sharing hopes and dreams, deep dive into health barriers in the community (ASTHO workflow). 5. Group identity. Developing vision, mission, goals, and create learning collaborative webpage. 6. Group documents and goals. Developing charter, first-stage action plan, list of potential partners, and goals. 7 to 9. Community partners. Vetting community partners/friends of the learning collaborative; prioritize partners and solutions. 10. Partner engagement. Inviting chosen community partners to join the learning collaborative; begin developing SMART goals. 11. Action plan. Developing action plan budget proposal (in collaboration with partners) for VDH and other funders. 12. Minigrants. Minigrant negotiations to decide final project budgets (learning collaborative and VDH). 13. Project awards. Award learning collaborative and partners minigrants, celebrate successes. 14–20. Implementation. Implementing action plan activities, PDSA cycles; review progress regularly. 21+. Continued action. Developing next action plan and continue evaluation cycles (based on completion of each action PDSA cycle).
Figure 2. Timeline for the Healthy Hearts Learning Collaboratives, Virginia. Abbreviations: ASTHO, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials; CVH, cardiovascular health; PDSA, plan-do-study-act; SMART, specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, and time-based; VDH, Virginia Department of Health.
The opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors’ affiliated institutions.