Management
  Alternatives Pty Ltd
  ABN 23 050 334 435

Formats
0 - Format examples
Tables of contents
1- CRC Manual
2- Refuge Manual
Values and principles
3. Client rights and
     responsibilities
4. Staff rights and
     responsibilities
5. Board rights and
     responsibilities
6. Beliefs and
    commitments
Governance
7. Board
8. Management
   committee
9. CEO job
   description
Service models
10. Supported
   accommodation
Legal frameworks
11. Duty of care
12. Privacy
Aspects of
service process
13. Worker security
    on home visits
Human resources
14. Disputes and
     dismissals
Evaluation
15. Evaluation

The following example is based on a supported accommodation service for people with acquired brain injury.

Introduction

Evaluation is about worthwhileness. Evaluation attempts to answer questions about such matters as effectiveness, efficiency, adequacy and appropriateness of services.

Within human services organisations there are many reasons why evaluation does not lead to certainties. Within the Service evaluation of the quality of services is made even more difficult because of the nature of the clients and services provided.

Clients have acquired brain injury. Staff are often working alone and not with direct supervision.

Within this context it is important to develop a service culture that:

• encourages people to be open to what is happening around them,
• are committed to providing client centred quality services and
• committed to the continual improvement of those services

There are a variety of strategies our service is using to help in the task of evaluating and improving services.

Special Considerations

In reviewing the quality of services to residents there are several areas of special consideration:

• Our service's residents all have head injuries. The residents experience various levels of cognitive, social, emotional and physical deficits.
• Our service's philosophy is based on meeting residents individual needs - the services provided to each resident are designed to meet their individual needs and the specific services provided vary from resident to resident on a day to day basis.
• The goals for residents are long term . Changes in residents may only be noticeable over the longer term e.g. 6 to 12 months or more.
• Determining whether services are of an appropriate quality requires complex judgements to be made.
• Residents, family and significant others, and staff may make those judgements differently.

Evaluation Policy

Our service will have strategies in place so the staff and management committee are able to:

• Identify the extent to which our service is achieving its aims and objectives (consistent with its philosophy)
• Continually improve the services provided and
• Minimise the room for self-delusion

Evaluation Strategies

The strategies our service will use will include:

1. Explicit Mission statement, Aims, Service and Management Principles. (See Policy and Procedures Manual)

2. Explicit Service Delivery Process. (See Policy and Procedures Manual)

3. Explicit Policy and Procedures. (See Policy and Procedures Manual)

4. Yearly Review of the Policy and Procedures Manual at both a Staff Meeting and Management Committee meeting

5. Informal ongoing discussion with residents relatives and significant others. The time that is spent with residents reviewing how things are going and where they need to go next.

6. Internal Formal Discussions with residents, relatives and significant others : Including assessment, individual service plans, etc

7. External Formal Discussions with residents. Having a person outside our service interview residents about such questions as whether they are getting the services they want. For this to happen once each year.

8. Formal and Informal discussions with staff re quality of care for residents.

9. Using Individual Service Plans for case management planning and review. This will include: Initial assessment of clients, the development of a Individual Service plan and review on a six monthly basis.

10. Key numbers. For the Management Committee and key staff to regularly review key statistical information (e.g. hours of service per resident; costs per hour of service, etc.)

11. Case Studies Over a two year period to develop three written case studies.

12. Questionnaires dealing with questions of the quality of services to residents.

13. Peer Review Staff working with each other to ensure that work is going well.

14. Supervision Regular ongoing formal supervision of staff.

15. Links with agencies, literature and reflection Hearing what others are doing. Reading about approaches to evaluation. Reading about results from evaluation studies and social research. Reflecting on the findings and their implications for your service. Including attendance at relevant conferences and staff training.

16. Using all the above in the normal day to day processes e.g.

Individual staff and residents setting priorities

Staff meetings

Management Committee meetings, Planning days, etc.