128. On the Ground Impact Series: Behind the Scenes of Care Collaboration Artwork

The Stepping In It Podcast with Renee Schulte & Jason Haglund

The Stepping In It Podcast is a weekly discussion of the latest news and trends in behavioral health policy development and practice. Each episode features interviews with experts from across the field, including policymakers, clinicians, researchers, and advocates. The podcast provides listeners with practical tips and resources for improving the quality and access to behavioral health care.

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The Stepping In It Podcast with Renee Schulte & Jason Haglund

128. On the Ground Impact Series: Behind the Scenes of Care Collaboration

February 10, 2026 • Renee Schulte

0:00 | 34:02

In this episode of the On the Ground Impact Series, we go behind the scenes of what care collaboration really means—and why it’s so often talked about but rarely done well. Moving beyond buzzwords, we unpack how true collaboration requires trust, shared vision, clear roles, and accountability across organizations and disciplines. Using real-world examples from healthcare and behavioral health systems, this conversation explores why collaboration efforts fail, what the data tells us about team-based care, and what it will actually take to break down silos so patients don’t fall through the cracks.

In this episode, you will be able to:

What care collaboration truly is (and why it’s more than internal teamwork).
The most common reasons collaboration fails across healthcare systems.
How leadership, culture, and incentives impact collaboration success.
What the data shows about team-based and collaborative care models.
Practical steps organizations can take to improve care coordination and information sharing.

The key moments in this episode are:

00:00:00 – Introduction & On the Ground Impact Series overview

00:02:00 – Setting the stage for collaboration

00:04:10 – Defining true collaboration vs. simple cooperation

00:07:45 – Why collaboration is rarely done well in healthcare

00:11:30 – Leadership, silos, and cultural barriers that derail collaboration

00:15:40 – What the data says about collaborative care models

00:19:10 – Team-based care explained: roles, structure, and shared plans

00:23:50 – Benefits of collaboration for patients, providers, and systems

00:27:30 – Practical fixes: communication, coordination, and data sharing

00:31:10 – Final thoughts: crossing the street and starting the conversation

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