Output Performance Measures

Presentation Derived from Martin & Kettner’s Measuring the Performance of Human Service Programs, Sage, 1996

What Are Performance Output Measures

Broadly defined, output measures are anything that a system or human service program produces.

Output measures capture information about the type and amount of outputs produced by a system

Types of Output Performance Measures

• Intermediate Outputs: products & services produced and consumed in production of final outputs (e.g. units of service)

• Final Outputs: The end products of human service programs (e.g. service completions)

Units of Service Defined

A unit of service is a standardized measure used to determine and report how much service is provided by a human service program. I.E. it is a unit of service volume

Types of Units of Service

• Information & Referral: One contact or one referral (contact or episode)

• Home Delivered Meals: One meal, delivered, heated & served

• Counseling Services: One hour (50 min.)

Selecting a Unit of Service

• Step One: Convene a focus group broadly representative of the stakeholders involved in the human service program

• Step Two: Brainstorm different unit of service options (episode, contact, material; time)

Selecting a Unit of Service

• Step Three: Evaluate each option against the following 5 criteria– Utility: usefulness & relevance– Precision: accuracy– Feasibility: time & effort– Unit Cost Reporting: cost per unit of service– Consensus: agreement on service unit &

implementation

Multiple Service Settings

Adult Day Care Services 1,000 days

Service Components• Transportation 1,900 trips• Meals 900 meals• Socialization & Rec. 5,200 hours• Health Screening 200 screens

Final Output Measures

Service Completions

Defined as one client completing treatment or receiving a full complement of services

Two Approaches to Developing Service Completions

• Standardized Approach:– When a minimum number of services are

required for clients to complete services then– A service completion is one client completing

one treatment

Two Approaches to Developing Service Completions

• The Case Approach Plan– When clients receive varied units of serviced

depending on individualized needs, then– A service completion is on client completing

a case plan

Service Completions & Client Outcomes

Outcome performance measures should only be completed for clients who clients who compliment a full compliment of services. I.E. efforts should only be directed toward service completions.