As part of the Agency of Human Services, the Department of Mental Health uses the Results Based Accountability (RBA) framework to evaluate the performance of our programs and initiatives. RBA is a framework that helps programs improve the lives of children, families, and communities and their performance because RBA:
- gets from talk to action quickly;
- is a simple, common sense process that everyone can understand;
- helps groups to surface and challenge assumptions that can be barriers to innovation;
- builds collaboration and consensus; and
- uses data and transparency to ensure accountability for both the well-being of people and the performance of programs
There are two types of accountability in RBA:
Population accountability is focused on the health and well-being related to entire communities, cities, counties, states, nations. It is talked about in terms of Outcomes and quantified through population-level Indicators. It is important to note that no single program, state agency, provider, or strategy can be accountable for population-level Outcomes or Indicators. Turning the curve at the population level requires the work of many partners and many programs all working toward a common outcome.
Performance Accountability is responsible for the health and well-being related to clients enrolled or served by specific strategies or programs. It is talked about in terms of Programs or Strategies and quantified through program-level Performance Measures.
RBA Clear Impact Scorecards
The Department of Mental Health has several RBA scorecards containing data and performance measures related to our programs and our system of care. We work toward the outcome that all Vermonters are healthy and we are one of many partners working to reduce the suicide rate in Vermont and increase the availability of mental health treatment (both indicators).
To view the RBA Scorecards for the Department of Mental Health click on the following links:
The Department of Mental Health (DMH) Scorecard
Reducing Seclusion and Restraint in Vermont's Psychiatric Hospitals
Vermont Psychiatric Care Hospital (VPCH) Outcomes
DMH System Snapshot
DMH Continued Reporting
How to Read the Scorecards
The use of the RBA Clear Impact Scorecard allows for stakeholders, legislators, and the general public access to DMH measurements as soon as they are updated. The scorecard is also interactive, allowing users to expand and collapse measures. It is also coded with color and symbols that allow users to quickly see the performance of a measure.
The color box around the Actual Value represents how close the measure scored as compared to the established targets. In this instance, the following ranges are used (below) and in the scorecard there would be an expandable graph that would contain this range information:
- Red: 2+ hours
- Yellow: between 1-2 hours
- Green: less than 1 hour
The current trend represents how long the data has been moving in the indicated direction. The color indicates whether that movement is good (green) or bad (red). For example: The rate has been decreasing (î) over the past two time periods in the right direction (green). Please note that the arrow does not indicate magnitude! An arrow going down over one time period could represent one less person served, or several hundred less people served. It is always important to click on the +/- sign next to each P or PM to see the full picture.