An Systems for Action study, Systems Alignment to Optimize Health Services for Youth Experiencing Homelessness, tests the feasibility of an integrated system of medical, social and public health programming designed to improve outcomes for youth experiencing homelessness in Hennepin County, Minnesota.

The study organizes community-engaged consensus building sessions with stakeholders from medical, social and public health systems and with youth experiencing homelessness in order to co-create strategies for system alignment, including multi-sector data integration, shared clinical practice guidelines, and co-location of health and social services for youth experiencing homelessness. Focus groups and interviews with key stakeholders are used to assess the feasibility of implementing the proposed system alignment strategies.

University of Minnesota's Youth Health and Housing Lab is conducting this study in collaboration with the Hennepin County Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program, the Minnesota Department of Health, the Hennepin Healthcare system, Minnesota Community Care, and local youth serving agencies.

This study is currently funded by an impact award after previously being supported by a developmental award in 2023-2024.

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Systems for Action (S4A) is a signature research program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) that is housed in the Department of Health Systems, Management and Policy. S4A research builds a Culture of Health by rigorously testing new ways of connecting the nation’s fragmented medical, social, and public health systems.