MyOutcomes, LLC is launching a robust clinical tool designed to enhance the performance of the behavioral health industry at the Netsmart Connections 2008 - Connecting the Community Conference in Orlando, Florida, April 14-17th. MyOutcomes is a Web-based system that increases the effectiveness and efficiency of behavioral health services. Utilizing simple but direct client feedback, mental health and substance abuse counseling professionals can quickly adjust the course of therapy to improve clinical outcomes (see also Behavior).
Featuring the characteristics incorporated in the Partners for Change Outcome Management System developed by Drs. Barry Duncan and Scott Miller over the past seven years, MyOutcomes has already captured provider acceptance due in large part to the client feedback process being so fast, easy, and relevant to clinical practice. MyOutcomes is already in use by Magellan Health Services, the United States Navy Family and Fleet Support Program, and Workplace Options, as well agencies in the United States, Canada, and England.
According to the research of Drs. Miller and Duncan, this system has been demonstrated to increase service effectiveness by up to 65% and dramatically improve efficiency by reducing no-shows, dropouts, length of stay, and overutilization. MyOutcomes also provides automated, quantifiable, real time results to validate performance and empowers the client to have a voice in the service process, which fulfills the mandate of the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health for recovery-oriented, individualized services.
MyOutcomes invites client feedback using two, 4-item visual analogue scales. The Outcome Ratings Scale (ORS) measures clients' perception of whether they are benefiting from services. The Session Rating Scale (SRS) measures the strength of the alliance between provider and client. Although easy to complete in less than two minutes, administration of the ORS and SRS using MyOutcomes generates outcomes reporting at all levels of an organization, identifies cases at risk for service failure, and provides empirically-based feedback messages to improve outcomes. The reliability and validity of the ORS and SRS have been demonstrated in published, peer-reviewed research.
In demonstrating how fast and easy this clinical tool is to use in clinical practices, Dr. Jeff Hoffman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Danya International explained that 'MyOutcomes tracks and improves the effectiveness and efficiency of behavioral health services by promoting a partnership between providers and clients. The recent push for outcomes measurement in mental health has been criticized as simply being another cost-cutting measure by managed care. With MyOutcomes, providers gain a true process and treatment improvement system based on immediate response to client feedback.'
Keywords: Behavior, Mental Health, Therapy, Treatment, Danya International.
This article was prepared by Health & Medicine Week editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2008, Health & Medicine Week via NewsRx.com.
