Coordinated Care in Starfish: What to Do When an Item Comes to You
What’s Expected
COORDCARE_ items: Review the request, route or respond as appropriate, and use Resolve when your part is complete.
Other Internal Use items: Follow the process described in the item. Using Resolve to close the loop is strongly encouraged when available.
When a Coordinated Care item comes to you, your role may be to respond to the request, get it to the right person, or both.
The support itself is not new. Starfish adds context, clearer ownership, easier routing, shared visibility, and a way to close the loop.
This guide explains how to decide what to do with an item, re-assign it when someone else should respond, and close the loop when your part is complete.
Start with the request itself and decide whether you should respond, re-assign it to someone else, or both.
A Coordinated Care item is another way a referral or request may reach you. Review what was shared and consider what you would normally do if the same request came to you another way.
The first question isn't “What does Starfish want me to do?”
It's: “What would I normally do with this request?”
The request should go to someone else
If another person should respond, use Re-assign to send the item to them. This may be someone within your own area or someone with different expertise or responsibility.
The item is assigned to me
If you are the appropriate person to respond, handle the request as you normally would within your role. Starfish provides additional context and a way to make your follow-up visible.Sometimes you may do both
You may receive an item, respond to part of the request, and determine that someone else should also be involved. Address what belongs with you and make another connection when needed.Working with an assigned item: Use the options on the tracking item to add a comment, re-assign it to someone else, or resolve it when your part is complete.
What Starfish Adds
- More Context: See the request alongside relevant information available in Starfish.
- Clearer Ownership: Assignment helps show who is responsible for the next step.
- Easier Routing: Use Re-assign when someone else should respond.
- Shared Visibility: See relevant activity across the student’s support network, helping everyone stay informed and avoid unnecessary or duplicate outreach.
- Closing the Loop: Use Resolve when your part is complete so others can see that the request received attention.
If someone else should respond, use Re-assign to move the item to that person in Starfish.
If another person should handle the request, you can re-assign the item directly in Starfish. This may be someone within your area or someone with a different role or area of expertise.
How to Re-assign
- Open the student's Starfish folder and select Tracking.
- Find the item (Flag or Referral) you received.
- Hover over the icon next to the tracking item to open the action menu.
- Select Re-assign.
- Begin typing the person's name and select the appropriate person from the available list.
- Add a brief comment if additional context would be helpful.
- Click Assign.
Don't see Re-assign? Re-assignment depends on your Starfish role and permissions. If you believe you should
have access but the option is not available, submit a ticket to the IT Service Desk.
When an item is assigned to you, review the available context and take the action that makes sense within your role and based on the student’s needs.
Step 1: Review the Item and Journal
Start with the information provided in the tracking item. Click the plus sign (+) next to the item to expand it and review the Journal for additional context and activity that has already occurred.
Step 2: Review Relevant Information in the Student Folder
When helpful, review other relevant information in the student’s Starfish folder to better understand the request and avoid duplicating support or outreach.
Step 3: Determine the Appropriate Response
Depending on the situation, your response might include:
- Contacting or meeting with the student
- Providing information or resources
- Helping the student identify next steps
- Coordinating with another support provider
- Connecting the student with another person or service
- Determining that no additional follow-up is needed
Stay Within Your Role
Respond to the part of the request that falls within your role. If another need emerges, connect the student with the person or area equipped to help rather than taking on work outside your role.
Once you have completed your part, the next step is to update the tracking item and close the loop.
Use Resolve when your part of the request is complete to show that the item received appropriate attention and follow-up.
What Does Resolve Mean?
Resolving an item means that appropriate attention or follow-up has occurred and the item no longer needs to remain open.
Resolve does not necessarily mean that the student’s concern or situation was successfully resolved. An item may be ready to close for different reasons based on the follow-up that occurred and the circumstances of the request.
When resolving an item, select the reason that best reflects what happened and add relevant context when needed.
How to Resolve an Item
- Open the student's Starfish folder and select Tracking.
- Find the item you are responding to.
- Hover over the icon next to the tracking item to open the action menu.
- Select Resolve.
- Select the resolution reason that best reflects what happened.
Note: Resolution options may vary by tracking item and may be updated as coordinated care practices continue to evolve. Select the option that best reflects the outcome of the request. - Optional: Add a brief resolution comment about the relevant action, outcome, or next step.
- Review the Close the Loop message for the person who raised the item.
- Click Submit.
Follow-Up Expectation: Coordinated Care items should remain open while reasonable follow-up is underway and be resolved when the item no longer requires active attention. Individual items may identify additional expectations or timeframes.
Closing the Loop
Closing the loop is an important part of coordinated care. When you resolve an item, Starfish allows you to document the outcome and provide an appropriate update to the person who raised it.
Resolution Comment
Briefly note the relevant action, outcome, or next step.
Close the Loop Message
Let the person who raised the item know that follow-up occurred. Share only what is
appropriate for that person to know.
Closing the loop is about making follow-up visible, not telling the whole story. The person who raised the item may only need to know that the request received attention or that an appropriate connection was made.
Looking for How to Make a Connection?
If you are trying to connect a student with support or understand how tracking items and coordinated care pathways work, see Using Starfish to Support Coordinated Care.