Welcome
We invite you to read DAP Health’s 2025–2028 strategic plan with the same sense of potential that we do.
Functionally, this plan identifies DAP Health’s focus over the next several years and the most promising pathways to achieving our goals. It is a lens for decision-making and guide for priority-setting. Its specific goals and objectives complement our broader comprehensive continuum of care and core competencies.
Most importantly, the objectives outlined in this document represent an opportunity to forge together the best parts of the DAP Health family to increase health care access, improve health outcomes, and achieve health equity in the communities we serve.
The approach taken was ambitious but not unfamiliar to DAP Health. With the help of so many of you, we identified needs and possible solutions that center each patient, value each employee, and respect the effort of each volunteer, donor, and partner. Throughout our process, we paid attention to trends that encouraged us to invest in efficiency and effectiveness while embracing innovation.
As you read this plan, we hope it resonates deeply with your passion for DAP Health’s mission. Your collaboration will be essential to our success, and together, we can not only meet but exceed expectations for those we serve.
Let’s move forward with confidence, creativity, and a shared sense of purpose.
Here’s to the next chapter of DAP Health — a chapter built by all of us, for all of us.
Most sincerely,
Patrick Jordan, Chair Strategic Planning Committee of the Board of Directors
and
Members of the Staff Strategic Planning Core Team:
David Brinkman, Chief Executive Officer
Corina Velasquez, Chief Operating Officer
Brande K. Orr, Chief Strategy Officer
Please note that this version varies from the original document approved by the board of directors, since certain clerical errors were addressed. Nothing material has changed.
Acknowledgments
DAP Health would like to thank the following individuals for their participation in the strategic planning process.
Strategic Planning Committee of the Board of Directors
Patrick Jordan, Chair
Kevin Bass
Frank Figueroa
Bruce W. Finch
Eve E. Fromberg-Edelstein, Esq.
Mark Hamilton
Staff Strategic Planning Steering Committee
David Brinkman
Joe Aquilina, MD
Chris Boone
Dana Erwin
Silas Gyimah, MD
Steven Henke
Dane Koch
David Morris, MD
Josh Nelson
Brande K. Orr
Samantha Prior
Briana Renner
Sheri Saenz
Judy Stith
Nereida Terrazas
C.J. Tobe
Corina Velasquez
Community Partners
Borrego Valley Endowment Fund
California Primary Care Association
California State University of Science and Medicine
Community Health Association Inland Southern Region
Community Health Group
DAP Health Community Advisory Board
Desert Care Network
Desert Healthcare District & Foundation
Eisenhower Health
Facktor Healthcare Consulting
Health Assessment and Research for Communities
Inland Empire Health Plan
Innercare
Neighborhood Healthcare
OLE Health
Ollin Strategies
Health Management Associates
Charles Robbins, MBA, Project Director
Warren Brodine
Helen Duplessis, MD, MPH
Iliana Gilman, MA
Betsy Uhrman
Gabriel Velazquez
Kate Washburn
Theory of Change
HMA worked closely with DAP Health’s staff steering committee and the strategic planning committee of the board to develop the following theory of change:
Beliefs – Our underlying assumptions about how change happens.
• All marginalized communities deserve access to quality, comprehensive services.
• Systems of oppression create real barriers to access and care.
• It takes courage to believe you deserve quality care.
• It takes a diverse team to create and sustain conditions of trust.
• Our work heals our patients, clients, and our employees.
• Our past informs our future.
• We will never abandon those we have served as we embrace others in need.
Activities – What do we deliver?
• Primary Care
• Oral Health Care
• Behavioral Health Care
• Pediatrics
• OB/GYN
• Sexual Health Care
• Gender-Affirming Care
• Urgent Care
• Volunteer Programs
• Revivals Stores
• Community Health
• Social Services
Approach – How do we deliver?
• Person-centered
• Culturally humble and responsive
• Stigma-free
• Judgment-free
• Harm reductive
• Sex-positive
• Quality-of-life-focused
Outputs – What happens from our delivery?
• Integrated health care services are available to, accessible to, and acceptable to community members.
• Health disparities for populations vulnerable to poor health outcomes are reduced.
• Services and support for community members reduces stigma, and people served who identify as members of communities vulnerable to poor health outcomes feel recognized and respected.
• Members of communities, especially disparately affected communities, have sufficient information and health literacy to make informed decisions about their physical, sexual, emotional, and overall health and health care.
Impact – What benefits and changes do we expect over time?
• Our patients, clients, and employees feel respected and valued.
• Our patients, clients, and employees have trust in our systems of care.
• Our patients, clients, and employees have agency and believe in their abilities and competencies.
• Our patients, clients, and employees achieve better physical and emotional health outcomes.
• Our patients, clients, and employees can meet their health-related social needs.
• Our patients, clients, and employees are very satisfied with the quality of their life
Strategic areas that are prioritized in the plan to achieve the vision
A. Components of Strategic Plan
Imperatives that anchor goals and objectives
End results that will specifically advance a key priority area
Outputs and/or outcomes through which DAP Health will achieve results
Figure B. Framework for Strategic Plan
HMA utilized the findings from the key informant interviews, focus groups, conversations with leadership and board, and the staff survey to synthesize areas of concern and need. Four categories ultimately surfaced as key priorities.
Figure
Advance Health Equity
Reduce health disparities and promote equitable access to services that improve diversity, equity, and inclusion, address social drivers of health, and achieve health justice.
Care for Employees
Cultivate a supportive and inclusive workplace where every team member is valued and engaged, creating an environment that nurtures satisfaction and collaboration.
Deliver exceptional health care and supportive services that exceed the expectations of those we serve, fostering a positive and lasting relationship with our patients and clients as they navigate their life journey.
Resources and Partnerships
Enhance our capacity to achieve our mission through effective collaboration and community engagement that builds strong partnerships and fosters innovation that is aligned with the community’s health and wellness goals.
Based on the engagement of partners and analysis of data, we also identified four cross-cutting strategies that shape and exert influence on DAP Health’s goals and objectives. Every objective is in service to these cross-cutting strategies, and tactics employed to achieve goals will also be aligned with these imperatives and guideposts.
Data Collection and Analysis
Capturing meaningful quantitative and qualitative facts, metrics, and data to drive decision-making.
Communication
The flow of both internal and external information that establishes shared knowledge, fosters unity, and improves stakeholder engagement.
Patient and Client Experience Systems Capacity-Building
Improving effectiveness as an investment in current and future organizational development; an infrastructure model that promotes self-propelling health outcomes for those we serve.
Organizational Stability
Identifying and developing resource models that position us to achieve programmatic aspirations, comply with regulatory bodies, and be resilient.
As shown in the section that follows, the strategic plan is completed by descriptive and timed goals and objectives that will achieve both output and outcome measures within each key priority area.
Figure D: Cross-Cutting Strategy Definitions
Figure C: Key Priority Definitions
Priorities, Goals, and Objectives
Priority #1: Advance Health Equity
Goal 1.1 Design programs and services for those most vulnerable to poor health outcomes by addressing health disparities, social drivers of health, and barriers to care identified through data to ensure responsive services.
1.1.1 Behavioral Health Care
1.1.1.1 By 06/2026, leverage internal current assets to enhance response to need for mental health and substance use disorder services, focusing on models, workflows, and populations where interventions have a proven impact on health outcomes.
1.1.1.2 By 06/2028, develop a business plan for either expanding direct delivery of and/or establishing broader formal referral relationships to link patients with substance use disorder peer navigator programs, a medication-assisted treatment program, and/or a harm reduction program, as appropriate; if approved, identify timeline for steps that can be achieved during strategic planning timeframe.
1.1.2
Environmental Health Care
1.1.2.1 By 06/2028, engage and expand partnership with active environmental health advocates, including public health agencies, currently studying the effects of environmental hazards on the health of the communities we serve so that we are prepared with a competitive needs statement when funding opportunities arise.
1.1.2.2 By 12/2026, ensure systems and employees are equipped to document and analyze risk among patients for health complications due to exposure to environmental issues and if risk is high, ensure employees have resources to make referrals and linkages to accessible internal and/or external care and support services.
1.1.3 Gender-Affirming Health Care
1.1.3.1 By 12/2025, assess alignment with and progress toward advancing standards of care set by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) and identify and implement workplans to enhance or expand strategies across the DAP Health system of care.
1.1.4 Older Adult Health Care
1.1.4.1 By 12/2025, conduct an internal assessment and develop a recommended workplan for refining case management programs for older adults to better serve as a foundation for a potential future Program for AllInclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) program.
1.1.4.2 By 12/2025, conduct a landscape analysis of PACE programs in our service area and explore potential subcontracting and/or referral partnerships.
1.1.4.3 By 06/2028, develop a business plan that includes a feasibility study for implementing a PACE program; if approved, identify timeline for steps that can be achieved during strategic planning timeframe.
1.1.4.4 By 06/2026, develop a regional business plan for a medication adherence program targeting older adults; pilot strategies where data indicates highest potential impact and if successful, scale over time based on need and results of monitoring and evaluation.
1.1.5 Oral Health Care
1.1.5.1 By 12/2025, develop and implement regional workplans to meet or exceed oral health care performance measures.
1.1.5.2 By 12/2026, conduct needs assessment among current and prospective patients and landscape analysis to identify opportunities to fill oral health care gaps in service area.
1.1.6 Pediatrics and Adolescent Health Care
1.1.6.1 By 12/2026, develop and implement regional workplans to meet or exceed pediatric and adolescent health performance measures.
1.1.7 Sexual Health Care
1.1.7.1 By 06/2025, assess alignment with and progress toward advancing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) pillars for its Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) initiative and identify and implement workplans to enhance or expand EHE strategies across the DAP Health system of care.
1.1.7.2 By 12/2025, develop a business plan for expanding sexual wellness services within the DAP Health system of care and through new opportunities; if approved, identify timeline for steps that can be achieved during strategic planning timeframe.
1.1.8 Women’s, Lesbian, Nonbinary, Pregnant Persons’, Queer, and Transgender Individuals’ Health Care
1.1.8.1 By 12/2025, develop a business plan for improving health outcomes for those receiving obstetrical and/or gynecological care focused on prevention and treatment of chronic conditions that affect patients differently due to anatomy and/or disproportionately due to health disparities such as stigma; if approved, pilot and, if successful, scale over time based on need and results of monitoring and evaluation.
1.1.8.2 By 06/2025, identify and adapt/adopt best practices to improve gynecological patient population cancer screening rates.
1.1.8.3 By 12/2025 meet or exceed required cancer screening performance measures.
1.1.8.4 By 06/2026, working collaboratively with the JEDI-B (Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging) team, develop an assessment tool to identify opportunities for reducing stigma and increasing inclusivity and sensitivity among employees for women, lesbian, nonbinary, pregnant, queer, and transgender patients; pilot interventions where data suggests highest potential impact, and if successful, scale over time based on need and results of monitoring and evaluation.
1.1.8.5 By 12/2026, implement data collection and monitoring systems to analyze morbidity and mortality rates among all DAP Health patients, including those who are pregnant and those who identify as women, lesbian, nonbinary, queer, and transgender.
1.1.8.6 By 06/2027, in alignment with DAP Health’s JEDI-B goals, develop a business plan to enhance culturally competent primary care for patients who identify as lesbian and/or queer women to include an evidencebased staffing plan, training, and evaluation strategy; if approved, identify steps that can be achieved during strategic plan timeframe.
1.1.9 Wraparound Services
1.1.9.1 By 06/2026, leverage technology, analytics, and systems—as well as new and existing partnerships— to inform data-driven business plans, workflows, and/or resources that address social drivers of health (SDoH) for patients and clients where interventions will make the most impact on health care access, health outcomes, and health equity; if approved, identify timeline for steps that can be achieved during strategic planning timeframe.
1.1.9.2 By 06/2025, complete initial mapping of transportation service options accessible for each site.
1.1.9.3 By 12/2025, create systems and train employees to collect transportation barrier data.
1.1.9.4 By 06/2026, develop a business plan to enhance transportation assistance, including a cost analysis comparing in-house options vs. outsourcing; pilot strategies where data indicates highest potential impact and if successful, scale over time based on need and results of monitoring and evaluation.
1.2.1 Hours of Operation and Scheduling
1.2.1.1 By 12/2025, develop a workplan to optimize patient access, scheduling, and throughput.
1.2.1.2 By 06/2026, implement workplan procedures and policies that will make the most impact on measurable patient access at clinics where patients face the most acute barriers to accessing care.
Goal 1.3 Identify and implement best practices that foster cultural proficiency and responsiveness among the workforce to serve diverse populations.
1.3.1
1.3.1.1
Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion-Belonging (JEDI-B)
By 06/2025, assess best practices for the delivery of culturally competent care to identify gaps and isolate core principles of JEDI-B as it relates to patients and clients, and employees.
1.3.1.2 By 12/2025, develop and launch a JEDI-B business plan that outlines mission department model and JEDI-B initiatives.
1.3.1.3 By 06/2026, based on assessment, enhance current training plan, to include a curriculum and evaluation framework, that equips employees in culturally competent best practices relevant to their role.
1.3.1.4 By 12/2026, keep pace with organization-wide completion rates for employee training opportunities and achieve satisfactory scores on patient satisfaction survey questions related to culturally and linguistically competent care.
1.3.1.5 By 06/2026, identify best practice and an implementation plan for improving inclusivity and belonging where there are significant areas of opportunity for vulnerable populations; pilot strategies and where successful scale and adapt across organization.
1.3.1.6 By 12/2026, establish a protocol for internal JEDI-B subject matter experts to review operational and organizational policies, procedures, practices, and planning that ensures organizational JEDI-B alignment.
1.3.1.7 By 06/2027, to improve JEDI-B for patients, develop a business plan to assess the need for, impact of, and viability of employing and billing for paraprofessionals (e.g., certified community health workers, peer support specialists, persons with lived experience, etc.); if approved, determine which steps can be achieved during strategic planning timeframe.
1.3.2 Linguistic Competency
1.3.2.1 By 06/2026, conduct a gap assessment of the delivery of language assistance and develop a protocol and plan to address most acute deficiencies; pilot strategies to improve language competency and if successful, scale the services over time based on patient needs and results of monitoring and evaluation.
1.3.3 Data Collection Efforts
1.3.3.1 By 12/2025, develop and implement a change management plan to enhance data collection on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression (SOGIE), and social drivers of health (SDoH).
1.3.3.2 By 06/2026, meet or exceed industry standard for SOGIE and SDoH data completeness with ability to stratify data by service type, patient demographic, and clinic location.
1.3.3.3 By 06/2026, document the degree to which patient-facing employees reflect patients served by identifying diversity gaps within service lines, and develop plan in collaboration with People Operations to apply compliant human resources practices to address gaps based on this analysis.
Goal 2.2 Innovate to create a supportive strengths-based organizational culture and structure that engage employees in furthering DAP Health’s mission and vision.
2.2.1
Employee Engagement, Accomplishments, and Opportunities
2.2.1.1 By 12/2025, increase communication about organizational mechanisms available for employee recognition.
2.2.1.2 By 06/2026, launch one annual training module for managers on how to inquire about satisfaction with employee recognition during 1:1 meetings.
2.2.1.3 By 12/2025, through collaboration between People Operations and each department, establish a local-level budget for managers and the Employee Activity Committee to collaboratively deploy teambuilding events.
2.2.1.4 By 06/2027, achieve 60% participation in teambuilding events by site/department, as relevant.
2.2.1.5 By 6/2026, through interdepartmental collaboration, achieve 60% participation rate in employee satisfaction and pulse surveys.
2.2.1.6 By 6/2028, maintain specific satisfaction ratings ≥90%; raise specific satisfaction ratings ≤75% by at least 5% year over year; and increase any specific rating ≤50% by at least 10% year over year.
2.2.2 Values
2.2.2.1 By 12/2025, deploy a plan to update and socialize organizational values.
2.2.2.2 By 12/2025, achieve 80% participation in customer service training for designated employees (two-year cycle).
2.2.3 Site Repair and Maintenance Plan
2.2.3.1 By 06/2026, conduct an assessment for repairs and maintenance for employee-designated spaces at all sites.
2.2.3.2 By 12/2026, for those sites in most need of repair, commit resources to a phased plan that maintains safe, compliant, welcoming, and functional facility conditions, usable square footage, and available capacity to increase employee satisfaction with facilities.
Priority #3: Patient and Client Experience
Goal 3.1 Enhance patient and client experience by achieving consistent internal and external customer service excellence.
3.1.1
Appointment Availability
3.1.1.1 By 06/2025, increase answer rates system-wide to no less than 80% of industry standard.
3.1.1.2 By 06/2026, improve answer rate patient satisfaction by 10% once a baseline is established.
3.1.1.3 By 06/2026, improve next available appointment goals by appointment type at clinics where the wait is below goal.
3.1.2
New Patient and Client Registration
3.1.2.1 By 06/2026, streamline the new patient registration process to optimize online scheduling, and adopt best practices for direct call scheduling.
3.1.2.2 By 06/2027, establish baseline and set goals for year-over-year improvement for new patient registration cycle time from initial contact to first visit.
3.1.3
Patient and Client Engagement and Satisfaction Survey
3.1.3.1 By 06/2026, update annual patient experience survey tool with enhancements to support meeting industry standards for both engagement and satisfaction.
3.1.3.2 By 06/2027, engage key departments to develop achievable actions in response to survey data that would most significantly improve health outcomes, health care access, and health equity; pilot actions, and if successful, scale over time based on need and results of monitoring and evaluation.
3.1.4 Provider and Service Adequacy
3.1.4.1 By 06/2027, launch a provider and service adequacy assessment initiative to measure the degrees of access patients and clients have to primary care, oral health care, and behavioral health care within the DAP Health system of care.
3.1.4.2 By 06/2028, expand adequacy assessment to consider specialty and other services provided directly, as well as those services with the highest rates of referral.
3.1.4.3 By 12/2027, create a business plan for addressing service gaps for underserved populations identified by network adequacy assessment of primary care, oral health care, and behavioral health care; if approved, determine which steps can be achieved during strategic plan timeframe.
3.1.4.4 By 12/2025, complete clinic-specific community profiles identifying the most prominent evidence-based SDoH negatively impacting health and well-being.
3.1.5 Communication with Patients and Clients
3.1.5.1 By 12/2025, develop and launch organization-to-patient communication protocols that consider multiple modalities for different subject matter; once baseline for satisfaction about communication is measured through annual patient satisfaction survey, set goals for improvement year-over-year.
Goal 3.2 Enhance patient and client accessibility and experiences by ensuring well-planned and inviting physical environments.
3.2.1
Site Repair and Maintenance Plan
3.2.1.1 By 06/2026, conduct an assessment for repairs and maintenance for patient spaces at all sites.
3.2.1.2 By 12/2026, for those sites in most need of repair, commit resources to a phased plan that maintains safe, compliant, welcoming, and functional facility conditions, usable square footage, and available capacity to increase patient and client satisfaction with facilities.
3.2.2 Branded Environment
3.2.2.1 By 06/2025, communicate a brand identity plan outlining steps to unify DAP Health’s patient and client environments.
Priority #4: Resources and Partnerships
Goal 4.1 Strengthen and grow organizational financial resources and partnerships to ensure DAP Health’s long-term sustainability, efficiency, and effectiveness.
4.1.1
Organizational Philanthropic Need
4.1.1.1 By 12/2025, determine programmatic and fiscal goals for FY28 and intervening years that include individual tactics for annual fund, capital campaign, and endowment.
4.1.1.2 By 06/2026, develop and launch fund development plans to meet goals.
4.1.1.3
By 12/2025, assess volunteer needs across the organization, and develop and scale volunteer opportunities and infrastructure to support expanded volunteer programs where opportunities would most likely enhance patient and client experience.
4.1.2 Organizational Fee for Service Needs
4.1.2.1 By 06/2025, conduct a current state analysis of lives assignment by clinic and by payor over time to determine opportunities for optimizing current contracts on behalf of the patient.
4.1.2.2 By 06/2025, assess potential to ensure access to current patients and attract prospective patients by enrolling with additional medical/dental commercial and other plans by site.
4.1.2.3 By 12/2025, develop a model that includes factors for negative and positive patient impact to forecast revenues using various payor mix scenarios.
4.1.2.4 By 06/2025, create a workplan to optimize in-house pharmacies, including medication courier service, to maximize patient accessibility and increase revenue.
4.1.2.5
By 06/2025, further assess and understand the changing 340B market, and develop strategies to maximize revenue that can be reinvested into patient care and services; reassess every six months.
4.1.3 Organizational Earned Income Needs
4.1.3.1 By 06/2028, examine best practice models of FQHCs for earned income, and conduct feasibility studies to explore current (e.g., clinics, pharmacies, Revivals) and additional earned income projects.
4.1.4 Patient and Client Needs
4.1.4.1 By 12/2025, conduct an analysis of local community-based safety nets as compared to patient needs.
4.1.4.2 By 06/2025, expand reach of circle of influence – including with current managed care organizational partnerships and primary care associations – and evaluate opportunities for advocacy in the local communities where we don’t have existing partnerships.
Goal 4.2 Advance policy and advocacy efforts to successfully serve populations vulnerable to poor health outcomes.
4.2.1 Governmental Relations
4.2.1.1 By 06/2025, secure government relations expertise by hiring a governmental relations employee or consultant to advocate for DAP Health’s mission at the local, state, and federal levels.
4.2.1.2 By 06/2025, expand reach of circle of influence including with current managed care organizational partnerships, primary care associations, and evaluate new opportunities for advocacy in the local communities where we don’t have existing partnerships.
4.2.2
501(c)(4) Public Launch
4.2.2.1 By 12/2025, develop 501(c)(4) strategic plan that includes a road map for activating the governing board and public launch.
4.2.2.2 By 12/2026, develop public policy position paper addressing issues impacting patients’ and clients’ health outcomes and health care access.
