Progress not Perfection: Using Technology to Measure and Drive Outcomes in Social Work

Overview: A mobile web-based and smartphone app, Goal Scaling Solutions, has been developed to evaluate individualized longitudinal change, with utilities in social work education and practice. Researchers will describe the use of GSS in interprofessional workforce development, program evaluation, and field education in social work.Proposal text: The need for outcome measurement, transparency, and accountability in social work education and healthcare have led to a number of federal mandates including the Hospital Readmission Reduction Program, the 21st Century Cures Act, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The growing need for providers in the workforce trained in evidence-based practice has increased the need for strong outcome measurement.

Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS) is a method of measuring individual and program goal attainment first available in 1968 (Kiresuk & Sherman, 1969). GAS is an individualized, not norm-referenced, measure that can be used to record within-subject change over time. The GAS scores measure change in performance for a goal, from much less than expected to much more than expected using a five-point scale. The numerical scale reflects all possible outcomes of a given goal, rather than an “all or nothing” approach. The use of a numerical scale allows for comparison among different clients with different goals, making it ideal for program evaluation. While GAS was originally developed for community mental health settings, it has been increasingly used in rehabilitation and educational settings (Chapleau & Harrison, 2015). Its use has been limited due to its laborious paper and pen method that relies on manual data collection, entry, and analysis that is prone to human error.

A web and smartphone application, Goal Scaling Solutions (GSS), was developed to address these limitations. Researchers created and piloted the HIPAA- and FERPA-compliant Goal Scaling Solutions app to provide assessment of student and client progress (Harrison et al., 2019; Harrison et al., 2021). GSS has been implemented within field education in social work, occupational therapy, nursing, music therapy, and speech. GSS is an outcome measure for personal and professional growth as well as knowledge translation in three Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) workforce development programs. Michigan Youth Prevention and Recovery from Opioid Use Disorders (MY-PROUD) and Interprofessional Peer Education and Evidence for Recovery program (I-PEER) are workforce development programs established to train masters level social work and occupational therapy students completing field placements in counties experiencing shortages in mental health services providers. The researchers’ recent studies (Weller, et al., 2021a; Weller, et al., 2021b), demonstrate the value of goal scaling to measure the efficacy of trainings in empirically supported treatments for substance abuse disorder and behavioral health disorders.

Seven years of data including user feedback have informed additional critical features including progress visualization and communication between providers and participants, and reporting across goals and programs to evaluate and improve programs. The researchers have also created goal libraries that allow users to select pre-scaled goals, both individual and program, from a variety of goal topics that are meaningful and personally relevant.

Researchers will demonstrate the structure and utility of GSS. Outcome data from I-PEER and MY-PROUD will be shared, and participants will be able to see the ease of communicating with stakeholders in this secure app, to reinforce meaningful change over time. Participants will also view the customizable options for automated, aggregated reporting for program improvement.