PolicyLab

Tara Dechert (she/her) is a clinical research program manager at PolicyLab at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She oversees the implementation of initiatives that bridge care between home and community-based services with office-based pediatric preventive care delivery systems to positively impact child health. Ms. Dechert’s work aims to ensure that pregnant women and their children receive the best possible care by providing a holistic approach to their overall health, well-being and education. To be successful, a goal of this work is to improve efficiencies across service delivery systems by focusing on intentional coordination of obstetrical and pediatric care with that of community health nursing and early childhood efforts. 

Throughout her professional career, Ms. Dechert has worked to improve policies, services, research and outcomes for vulnerable children and families—all with an emphasis on quality and public/private resource efficiency. She has extensive experience in the not-for-profit and government sectors conducting assessment and evaluation of policies and government-funded programs as well as advocacy and strategic planning. Areas of expertise include evidence-based program development and implementation and community health nursing through home visiting. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work from Elizabethtown College and a Master of Science in Administration of Justice from Shippensburg University.