A Quality Improvement System Overview

Our Philosophy
The Board of Directors and leadership staff at the Children’s Home Society of North Carolina has set forth quality expectations and broad goals that call for ongoing evaluation. This evaluation involves periodic review of consumer services and organizational administrative activities aimed at assuring the financial viability and efficient, effective functioning of the organization and the delivery of quality services to children and families.

The CEO promotes a culture that upholds excellence and continual improvement; implementation of an organization-wide evaluation framework; constructive use of data to promote learning and continual improvement; the involvement and empowerment of all staff in the quality improvement process; inclusion of external stakeholders and community members input through collaborative service delivery, focus groups or surveys; and an annual scorecard reflecting gains made against goals.

Program Evaluation
Our ongoing evaluation takes into account all of the programs, regions, sites, and all individuals and families served by the Children’s Home Society of North Carolina. Senior managers and supervisors set performance and outcome expectations in a supportive manner and allay concerns about repercussions for identifying areas in need of improvement. The organizations Quality Improvement Plan outlines the responsibilities of Quality Improvement Teams which involve every staff member and are charged with the responsibility of implementing organization-wide quality improvement activities.

The purpose of our QI process is to:

• Review results;
• Identify areas of strength that can be built upon,
• Identify areas of needed improvement;
• Implement and evaluate improvements on a small or broad scale;
• Modify implemented improvements as needed;
• Keep staff informed and involved throughout the improvement cycle.

Staff throughout the organization and stakeholders (including board representatives, academic research partners, and contract QI consultants) work together to:

• Develop each of the key outcomes and outputs;
• Develop each relevant qualitative and quantitative indicators; and
• Identify the data sources, including measurement tools and instruments.

Strategic Planning
The organization’s governing body reviews and approves the long-term plan
to ensure that planning encompasses:

• A review of the organization’s mission, values, and mandates;
• An assessment of strengths and weaknesses;
• Measurable goals and objectives that flow from its mission and mandated responsibilities; and
• Appropriate strategies for meeting identified goals, including consideration of the organization’s continued development and sustainability and possible need to redirect, eliminate, or expand service to respond to changing community demographics and needs.

Communication of Results
The QI Plan is available upon request and is a part of the organization’s staff and board member orientation. Staff responsible for organization-wide evaluation are qualified by education and experience to:

• Engage, train and coach individuals and teams throughout the organization in the quality improvement process;
• Systematically collect information and analyze data; and
• Communicate results and recommendations to various key audiences.
  Stakeholders receive an annual summary report of gains made against goals by mail, in person or as made available on the Children’s Home society website.

The organization’s leadership, including board or advisory members, and quality improvement personnel communicate with staff and stakeholders about the achievement of desired outcomes, quality indicators, and benchmarks or targets.

What We Measure

For more information about our quality improvement efforts, please contact us via email or at 1-800-632-1400.