I’ve been spending my time in recent weeks listening to and speaking about systems change. I have been asked to consider new ways to do business and I have been asking others to do the same. All of this activity involves the delivery of human services and much of it involves public policy. Meanwhile, seemingly endless political messages permeate daily life and frequently touch on issues involving public policy.

This week, I met with a small faith community and our topic of discussion was, “Have You Reached A Verdict?” The focus was on justice and how we as individuals make judgments. Our directed discussion included some questions to ponder, such as recalling a time when we had been unfair in our judgments, when we let our own bias interfere with the evidence, or when we withheld judgment and later found that we had, in fact, changed our thinking.

As I pondered these ideas and tried to be brutally honest in my self-assessment, I had to admit that I am quick to judge and frequently do so based on my own personal bias. Further, it seems that our “sound-bite” culture encourages this type of response. Thinking this through, it seems that most of the time, these judgments tend toward the negative – it’s easier to be against something unknown, after all, than to be an advocate for something about which we have limited knowledge. 

If we want to improve conditions, but are negative about all “new” ideas, how, then do we affect change? Further, in a society with limited resources, how do we make prudent, compassionate decisions, especially if those decisions may conflict with our own self interest or our own notions of how things ought to be?

It seems to me as I reflect on recent discussions about United Way’s Community Access Network (CAN), Indiana’s Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) Eligibility Modernization (V-CAN), and the Healthy Indiana Plan, that this message to take time to make prudent judgments is quite timely. I have been in many gatherings these past weeks that discuss these new systems. Most of the questions I have heard express fear that those systems may not deliver the hoped-for results. At the same time, the success of these same programs depends heavily on front-end commitments by all involved to try to make them work. 

It’s impossible to know with new systems exactly how much time, effort, cost, will be involved and even new innovations have limits. The Healthy Indiana Plan, for instance, doesn’t nearly cover all of the uninsured. But it does cover many more than are currently helped.

For the past few months, FSSA has been actively engaging non profits and community groups to increase access to its telephone- and computer-based services (V-CAN). It’s impossible to know the impact of this service on the non profit sites. Will it take valuable resources and staff time to help clients access government services? Or will it enhance a non profit service provider’s ability to work more holistically with those they already serve? 

As United Way’s CAN manager and I have visited with local organizations, we have been met with more than a little trepidation. Will United Way’s CAN create more administrative work for organizations? Will there be guaranteed funding after the first year? Will other key partners join in? The Vision Council, in proposing CAN, on the other hand, asked: Will it save organizations and their clients time by reducing duplicative intakes and paperwork? Will it help organizations provide more long- term developmental services to clients? Will it help our community identify gaps in services and seek additional services to fill those gaps?

I don’t know the answers to any of these questions, but what do we have to lose, after all, by approaching new conditions with a positive outlook? I can’t say with all certainty that any of these new models will “work.” But I believe that they have a better chance if we focus on our “what ifs” on the possibility that they actually might.

Isn’t a positive outcome the best outcome? What if change really is good?

 Nancy Vaughan is president of United Way of Madison County Inc.