Member
Profile
(other
member profiles)
Robert
L. Fischer, Ph.D. (Rob),
Director of Program Evaluation, Families First
-Primary services provided
-Accredited? By Whom?
-How long has your organization had dedicated QI/QA staff?
-How is your QI/QA function organized? Reporting Structure, Staff, Teams, Responsibilities, etc.
-Describe your process or plans to measure outcomes, compare to benchmarks, etc.
-Describe your data collection system in relation to QI/QA
-What memberships and/or resources have you found to be valuable in your work (books, organizations, people, tools, etc.)
-What do you enjoy most about working in the QI/QA field?
-How has the Quality Leader's Network been of value to you?
Size of your organization (total staff, total revenue)
140 staff, $14.5 million
Primary
services provided
Family counseling, family life education, teen pregnancy and parenting services,
transitional housing for homeless mothers and their babies, maternity home,
foster care, adoption services, family support, after-school and summer
youth services, community organizing, family advocacy
Accredited?
By Whom?
Council on Accreditation of Services for Families and Children (COA)
How
long has your organization had dedicated QI/QA staff?
Since 1989 as full-time position
How
is your QI/QA function organized? Reporting Structure, Staff, Teams,
Responsibilities, etc.
Teams, Responsibilities, etc. Director of Program
Evaluation oversees work of one full-time masters-level evaluation
associate and program staff involved in data collection activities
Describe
your process or plans to measure outcomes, compare to benchmarks, etc.
We have logic models in place in twelve service areas with ongoing data collection
addressing the initial indicators; reporting is annual but working to more
frequent data releases. We make use of outcome data from comparable
programs as well as county-level and other population-based data for
placing our outcomes in a meaningful context.
Describe
your data collection system in relation to QI/QA
We use a variety of data measures and methods, tailored to the specific circumstances of each service are. We frequently make use of client ratings of the effectiveness of service as well as client feedback. We also draw on the perspectives of other involved stakeholders, administrative records, case records, and whatever else is available or can be collected in a timely fashion.
What
memberships and/or resources (books, organizations, people, tools, etc.)
have you found to be valuable in your work
- American Evaluation Association & EVALTALK listserv
(www.eval.org)
- Society for Social Work and Research (www.sswr.org)
- Handbook for Practical Program Evaluation (Jossey-Bass)
What
do you enjoy most about working in the QI/QA field?
The sense that you are making a direct contribution to improving the effectiveness of services for families and children.
How
has the Quality Leader's Network been of value to you?
The QLN has offered a direct link to colleagues working on the same issues
for both technical as well as professional support.
