Step 5: Planning

After choosing your LTSS model, it's time to shape your implementation approach by understanding challenges and identifying next steps. Strategic planning is a good way to do this.

Strategic planning process

The steps below describe the strategic planning process.

Prepare to meet requirements for financing

• Review requirements for CMS certification of your program
• Review information on your state’s requirements for the model you chose (if you plan to use state reimbursements to help fund your program)
• Identify where you'll get funding for:
  • Creation or improvement of your program
  • Ongoing program costs
• Determine how much financial support will come from your tribe

Plan for the long term

• Use information from your SWOT analysis to create action items that address your program’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
• Determine if protocols within your tribe will require you to do anything else (For example, conducting a needs assessment or hiring staff may require a tribal resolution or you may need to work with your tribe to revise or create codes that deal with elder abuse)
• Find opportunities to take advantage of current resources. (For example, can a new program share overhead costs with an existing tribal clinic?)
• Reach out to key contacts within your tribe, community, county, and state to let them know about your program plans
• Review your current training and funding needs, determine who you can work with to help meet them, and contact them to initiate a relationship and a contract, if needed
• Create a plan for implementation that lists timelines for each task you need to complete

Resources

• Watch a short video on how tribes build partnerships and coordinate services to support their LTSS programs
• Watch a video on how Oneida Nation of Wisconsin worked with the state to create a reimbursement scenario that works for both parties
• Watch Leveraging Resources for LTSS to learn more about how to maximize resources you may already have.

After you have created a plan and addressed internal and external factors, your LTSS plan is ready to implement.

Proceed to Step 6.