This study examined whether parent reports of their child's service use are more reliable in a family-focused delivery system than in more typical service environments. Data were obtained through the Fort Bragg Evaluation Project, a longitudinal assessment of a managed care model for delivering mental health services to children and adolescents.…

This paper evaluates two locally driven, school-based programs in Illinois that use a system of care approach to provide services for children and adolescents with, or who are at risk for, developing emotional or behavioral disturbances. These sites included a mental health early intervention pilot program in an elementary school setting, and a…

This final report discusses the outcomes of the Family Connections Research and Demonstration Project, a project funded by the Oregon Center for Mental Health Services to study the effectiveness of an intervention designed to address the major problems related to services initiation and continuance within the children's mental health system. The…

This report describes the implementation and first 6 months of data collection of the required performance outcome measures for children receiving mental health services in Florida, as required under Florida's 1994 Government Performance and Accountability Act. This summary is of data received from August 1996 to January 1997 and includes data for…

A quality-assessment study was conducted at a university mental health service to review diagnostic practices, using the third edition of the American Psychiatric Association's "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders." Diagnostic practices of the staff and problems with student record keeping are discussed.…

Describes the design, implementation, and evaluation of a training program in the primary prevention of childhood mental disorders for caregivers, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. Cites the program's positive impact, as measured by increases in participants' knowledge and skills. (Author/MJL)

In simulated decision-making situations in a community mental health center, three types of information were studied and rated: political; cost-benefit, and statistical. Only cost-benefit information was rated as significantly influencing administrators' decisions. (MH)

A pilot system of individualized and rurally compatible community-based alternatives to residential and institutional treatment settings for seriously emotionally disturbed children was evaluated. The results indicate that this intensive, community-based, service-delivery system appears to improve children's behavioral and emotional functioning,…

Statistical approaches to assess how prevention and intervention programs achieve their effects are described and illustrated through the evaluation of a health promotion program to reduce dietary cholesterol and a school-based drug prevention program. Analyses require the measurement of intervening or mediating variables to represent the…

Program managers increasingly incorporate standardized tests into outcome evaluation. Guidelines are presented for selecting and using standardized measures following addictions treatment. These principles, which cover eight basic criteria, are applicable to outcome evaluation of health programs in general. Practical issues related to using…

Conventional monitoring and evaluation (M&E) textbooks rarely address the various political influences exerted on M&E of public health programs. Policymakers are often the largest consumers of M&E information; indeed, the genesis of many public health program evaluation efforts is a need to inform public policy. People define "political…

The primary goal was to develop and implement a school-based, trauma-specific intervention program for inner-city children exposed to the World Trade Center attacks on September 11th, 2001. The feasibility and acceptability of the program, and its research component, were examined. The efficacy of the program was evaluated in a pilot study.…

Purpose: We sought to determine whether participants in the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) with an informal caregiver have a higher or lower risk of nursing home admission than those without caregivers. Design and Methods: We performed a secondary data analysis of 3,189 participants aged 55 years or older who were enrolled in…

Designed for parents of children with mental, emotional, or behavior disorders, this booklet provides information on accessing mental health services through health maintenance organizations. The first part of the guide provides information on how managed care can improve children's access to behavioral health services through expanded service…

Describing the mental health program at Sherman Indian High School in Riverside, California (a boarding school), this document details: Sherman's clinical services; inservice training program (dormitory personnel, teachers, school counselors, public health service personnel, and integration of these groups); consultation services; cooperative…