Final Project
Healthcare Admin Capstone
Milestone Six
Evaluation Methodologies
September 11, 2021
Carrie Ferrell
Southern New Hampshire University
Final Project
Improving Mental Health Care Access in Rural Areas
Evaluation Methodologies
It is critical that a clear vision is mapped out with a strategic plan in place to be sure the
program's process and performance is managed effectively. The first step an organization should
take is ensure there is a solid plan in place to measure progress. This will allow measurements to
be taken and used to create a solid progression on the effectiveness and success of the program.
Without the measurement of data, it would be impossible to manage and present the
effectiveness of the program. Collecting, measuring, and analyzing data is the core piece of any
effective program implementation. Part of a successful implementation is ensuring there are
metrics in place that unique to the program as well as align with the purpose and goals of the
program. There are three specific steps that should be considered when evaluating to be sure the
metrics align accurately. The first step is to ensure the goals are understood by all, second is to
ensure the success factors to be fulfilled are determined and clearly defined, and finally all the
factors should be measurable.
Methods for Measuring Success
A quantitative and qualitative measuring technique will be used to accurately evaluate the
mental health program. The quantitative technique will be the easiest method. This will consist
of measuring the amount of participation within the current mental health department before the
program is started, another measurement at six months into the program, and then a measurement
taken annually starting on the one-year anniversary of the programs launch. The other
quantitative measurement will be measuring the number of providers using the same time
frames, before, six months, and then annually. This will include providers located within the
physical location and those participating in the telehealth section of our program. For the
Final Project
qualitative portion of the data, an assessment will be given to patients asking their opinions on
various aspects of service such as appointment wait time, wait time between appointments, how
well they felt listened to by their provider, their thoughts on in person versus telehealth services,
etc. This analysis will allow us to shape and refine the program as needed to ensure maximum
success. The overall goal of the program is to increase access to mental health services in rural
areas. This program will not succeed without patient participation and overall satisfaction.
Data Gathering
Evaluation of a program always requires the gathering of data sources. Once the
measures are put into place, the data can be gathered. This will be done thru a variety of ways
that includes records, reports, questionnaires, interviews, and observations. Observations will be
done via administrative personnel based on their interactions with patients during check ins,
appointment scheduling, and wait times. These observations will be noted by the staff and
entered into a tracking system. This system wil