COACH case study: Allegheny County, Pennsylvania

Mar 28, 2025

Building the complex care field Strengthening ecosystems of care Convening Education & training Measurement & evaluation SDOH & health equity Workforce development

Many U.S. healthcare and human services organizations are struggling to hire, support, and retain workforce who can effectively connect with individuals and families facing complex health and social needs.

Camden Coalition’s COACH framework has been helping the Allegheny County Department of Human Services (ACDHS) throughout southwestern Pennsylvania and the City of Pittsburgh to support and empower frontline staff in its family-focused Hello Baby initiative.

ACDHS has used COACH training with their Hello Baby providers since 2020. They have found it empowers frontline staff to better engage and build relationships with families experiencing a range of complex health and social challenges that require more flexible, coordinated care — including housing and employment insecurity, mental health challenges, and child welfare system involvement.

Here is how the Camden Coalition helped ACDHS in training and integrating the COACH framework into Hello Baby, to the benefit of Allegheny County families and care providers.

I may have more than a couple people with the same need. My priority is to help them all, but if someone is more independent, they can manage calls on their own. If someone is less independent, I may need to sit with them to help make calls or fill out an application... I think it helps to have the COACH model because you will burn yourself out if you try to do everything. - Charece Lyons, Healthy Start Inc., Hello Baby Priority

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