The Measurement Group

Improving outcomes in health, behavioral health & social services through applied social research

Evaluation of Programs for Substance Use Disorders

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The Measurement Group works with a range of substance abuse treatment and prevention programs. TMG was awarded the Distinguished Contribution Award from the California Association of County Alcohol and Drug Program Administrators for its work in establishing and evaluating innovative models of service care throughout the State of California.

  • TMG evaluates programs designed to increase access to quality substance abuse treatment and prevention services.
  • TMG works with programs specializing in treatment for persons with co-occurring substance abuse and other co-occurring disorders.
  • TMG evaluates programs that aim to increase the capacity of service providers to provide state-of-the-art substance abuse interventions.
  • TMG evaluations document the processes of innovative substance abuse services so that successful programs can be replicated.
  • TMG evaluations measure outcomes at the client, program, and systems levels.
  • TMG evaluates substance abuse programs for general and specific populations, including women, families, and youth.

Selected Examples

PROTOTYPES implemented an innovative process improvement project to strengthen access and retention in substance abuse treatment, as part of the Network for the Improvement of Addiction Treatment (supported by a partnership of CSAT and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation).

Since 1990, The Measurement Group has worked with a number of community-based programs to evaluate and disseminate model substance abuse treatment programs for women and children (various federal, state, local, and private funders).

Two rural-frontier counties in Northern California (Lassen & Plumas) collaborated to develop an integrated substance abuse prevention and treatment system for adolescents and their families (funded by CSAT).

Evaluation of Healthcare Programs

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The Measurement Group works with a range of healthcare programs for high-need and vulnerable populations. We specialize in the evaluation of programs that provide direct services, as well as initiatives for building infrastructure and affecting systems change.

  • TMG evaluates programs designed to increase access to quality healthcare services.
  • TMG works with programs specializing in treatment and prevention of major health conditions such as HIV/AIDS, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
  • TMG evaluates healthcare workforce development programs that aim to increase the capacity of providers to meet evolving needs.
  • TMG evaluations document the processes of innovative healthcare programs so that successful programs can be replicated.
  • TMG evaluations measure outcomes at the patient, program, and systems levels.
  • TMG evaluations document the implementation of best practices in healthcare.

Evaluation Internship/Part-Time position

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Image courtesy of mrpuen at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Image courtesy of mrpuen at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Evaluation Internship or Part-Time Position
Coding of Family Strengthening Themes in Qualitative Case Studies

The Measurement Group LLC has an immediate opening for a part-time temporary Evaluation Assistant/Intern position. The Evaluation Assistant/Intern will primarily assist with coding qualitative case studies from an evaluation of the Westside Partnerships for Families program, a child abuse prevention program that uses a mental health home visiting framework. The Evaluation Assistant/Intern will:

  • Receive training on coding procedures and code of a set of case studies as part of a study to be submitted for publication;
  • Learn how to use qualitative data analysis programs such as NVIVO for coding;
  • Learn about reliability analysis in qualitative inquiry;
  • Assist with preparation of project data for submission to a professional journal;
  • Work under the supervision of senior evaluation staff.

The Evaluation Assistant/Intern may also be assigned additional evaluation support tasks on other projects as needed. This is a short-term position. $15/hour. Work must be performed at the offices of The Measurement Group in Culver City, CA during business hours (9am – 5pm, M-F).

Requirements: Undergraduate or graduate psychology or related social science major, plus experience/knowledge of child welfare, child development, and/or related social services. B.A. preferred, although an undergraduate with relevant experience will be considered.

This project is part of an evaluation of the Westside Partnerships for Family program, which was recently featured in an article in Children and Youth Services Review. The qualitative coding is for a new article that examines in more depth how this mental health home visiting model promotes protective factors for child abuse prevention and family strengthening.

Contact Dr. Lisa Melchior

 

 

 

 

Mental health home visiting service model for child abuse prevention

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cysrMy co-authors Katherine Reuter, Ph.D. and Amber Brink and I recently published an article about a mental health home visiting service model for child abuse prevention. The journal – Children and Youth Services Review – allowed us to share our findings not only by publishing the full article, but also in a brief 5-minute audioslide presentation. Click here to view the presentation and learn more about the model and results that support its effectiveness in improving family functioning among families with young children who are at risk for child maltreatment.

New publication coming soon

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Image courtesy of bluebay at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

It’s always exciting when we have the opportunity to publish findings from our program evaluations. We are pleased to announce that we have a new publication coming soon! An article resulting from our work with the Westside Partnerships for Families program has been accepted for publication in Children and Youth Services Review. The paper, An Intensive Mental Health Home Visiting Model for Two At-Risk Early Childhood Populations, is authored by Katherine Reuter, PhD, former Program Director at the Providence Saint John’s Child and Family Development Center (CFDC) in Santa Monica, California, and Lisa Melchior, PhD and Amber Brink, BA of The Measurement Group.

Partnerships for Families is a child abuse prevention program that was initially funded by First 5 LA in 2006. Part of a county-wide initiative, Providence Saint John’s CFDC  implemented this program in the Westside Service Planning Area of Los Angeles County. In the PFF Mental Health Model, mental health professionals work with families in a home visiting setting. The purpose of the program is to reduce risk and build protective factors in families with young children at-risk for child maltreatment. The paper describes the PFF Mental Health Model and documents improvements in family functioning among participants. It also presents data showing how caregivers reduced their risk on a number of personal characteristics — particularly those characteristics amenable to change through mental health intervention. Results were examined in two groups referred to the program: families with young children (age 0-5 years) who were referred by the Department of Child and Family Services, and pregnant women who were referred by community service providers due to risk factors for child maltreatment (such as depression, substance use, and/or domestic violence). Positive outcomes were observed at both the individual caregiver and family level in both of these groups.

We are pleased to help disseminate the outcomes of this innovative program and contribute to the evidence base for its effectiveness. While the focus of this article is primarily quantitative, we are currently working on another that will present a qualitative analysis of selected case studies to illustrate ways in which program participants demonstrate aspects of family strengthening.