Gm. Burlingame et al., PRAGMATICS OF TRACKING MENTAL-HEALTH OUTCOMES IN A MANAGED CARE SETTING, Journal of mental health administration, 22(3), 1995, pp. 226-236
Accountability, cost effectiveness, and continuous quality improvement
are essential features of all managed health care systems. However, a
pplication of these principles to mental health treatments has lagged
behind other health care services. In this article, administrative, pr
actice, and technical issues are addressed through a joint effort betw
een academically based researchers and administrators from two large m
anaged health care organizations. Principles related to the measuremen
t of outcome, instrument selection, and obstacles to the implementatio
n of an ongoing program to assess mental health treatment outcomes are
identified. Finally, principles for successfully changing mental heal
th provider behavior toward outcome assessment and the implications of
such for mental health delivery systems are discussed.