The evolution of a human services network

The delivery of human services in most communities is complicated by competition between agencies for money, esteem, and clientele. There is a need for developing a strategy of interagency service coordination. Representatives of human service organizations in a suburban community worked together to establish a network of services emphasizing coordination and the utilization of multiple resources to meet identified program needs. The description of this project includes: (a) a discussion of the community and its special problems; (b) a specification of objectives for service coordination; (c) a presentation of the theoretical framework underlying the development of the network; (d) an analysis of the stages of development; and (e) a summary including evaluations, conclusions, and possible future directions.