Governance – CHC Resource Page

CCHN developed this Board Work Plan Tool to allow CHCs to plan out the Board of Directors’ oversight responsibilities over the course of the year.

• The National Association of Community Health Centers provides a variety of tools and resources addressing the legal, administrative, financial and clinical aspects of being part of a CHC governing board. These tools include:
  • Through mylearning.nachc.com CHCs can access an Introduction to Health Centers for Governing Board Members and is geared toward strengthening board members’ competencies. Although this is a free resource some additional log-in information is necessary for access.
  • Governance Information Bulletins, which break down board roles and responsibilities into 19 documents that each address a specific CHC governing board responsibilities or effective governance method and provide examples of best practices. This series can be downloaded for free and is available in both English and Spanish.
  •  NACHC Governance Guide for Health Center Boards: The guide replaces the “Health Center Program Governing Board Workbook” and addresses major areas of board responsibility and contextualizes them, where appropriate, in the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Health Center Program Compliance Manual and relevant state and federal laws. The guide also includes sample tools such as board role descriptions, board matrix, board candidate interview questions, and board and CEO evaluations.
• The Community Health Association of the Mountain/Plains States (CHAMPS) has gathered together regulations, archived webcasts on governance topics, sample documents covering topics such as bylaws, meeting minutes and agendas, tools to assist in evaluating the CHC leadership and board, and resources to help in recruiting and orienting new board members. All of these resources can be found for free on the CHAMPS Community Health Center Board Resources
• The following resources provide different types of assessments for board self-evaluation. Resources help define roles of boards, overview of a great board and detail what high performing boards look like:
  • Characteristics of High Performing Boards
  • Pathologies of a Board and How to Correct Them
  • Overview of a Great Board
  • CHC Early Warning Assessment
• Resources specific to Program Requirement 19: Conflict of Interest Policy can be found in the BPHC Newly Funded TA Web Guide: Resources for New and Existing Grantees, specifically in part 5C. BPHC also posted an example of an Annual Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest,  as shared by Sumter Family Health Center.
• NACHC previously published the issue brief concerning Ensuring Compliant Health Centers Bylaws and Effectively Addressing Conflicts of Interest.
• The Colorado Secretary of State developed a Board Education eLearining series that are intended for all current or aspiring board members for nonprofit organizations. The series addresses how to be effective and responsible nonprofit board members. Though not specific to CHC, the series is a free tool that can be used for CHC staff and board education.