Outcomes assessment: evaluation in routine practice

Author(s): Clardy, J., Smith, L. G., Smith, G. R.

Journal/Book: Scand J Soc Welfare. 1998; 7: 108 Cowley Rd, Oxford OX4 1JF, Oxon, England. Blackwell Publ Ltd. 132-136.

Abstract: Evaluating the quality and effectiveness of human services, whether social services or medical services, is critically important for the providers, for the organization, and for the payers of those services. We propose that outcomes assessment, a continuous model of evaluation designed for routine services settings, can be considered for use in evaluating the effectiveness of human services on a routine basis. In medical care, outcomes assessment measures initial and subsequent disorder-specific and generic outcomes domains as well as prognostic or case-mix characteristics that can be used to adjust outcomes among groups. We describe a current implementation of outcomes assessment in a state mental health system in the US and make recommendations for the future of the field.

Note: Article Booth BM, Univ Arkansas Med Sci, Dept Psychiat, Ctr Mental Healthcare Res, 8500 W 10TH St Suite 605, Little Rock,AR 72204 USA

Keyword(s): outcomes; evaluation; mental health; DISORDERS

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