The Columbus Organization Pioneers Quality Improvement Approaches to Improve Outcomes for Individuals
WAYNE, Pa., Jan. 28, 2020 – The Columbus Organization, a leading provider of care coordination services for individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, has consistently been increasing efforts to improve quality and outcomes for individuals being supported.
Focusing heavily on compliance, quality, and outcomes, The Columbus Organization’s Quality Assurance department, led by Melissa Richards, Ph.D., LBA, BCBA-D, will be adding two additional Quality Enhancement Coordinators (QECs) that will expand the team to a total of ten QEC’s across the states we serve.
“We are very excited to be pioneering quality improvement approaches and adding to our team of Quality Enhancement Coordinators. These efforts set a new standard for quality of service, allow us to address issues before they become problems and establish our intent to be a leader in quality for the case management industry,” said Jeff Klimaski, CEO and President.
The QECs review the Individualized Service Plans (ISPs) and Person-Centered Plans (PCPs), that are created by the Care Coordinators and the individuals they support to verify that the plans represent best practices, meet state standards, and satisfy the needs of the individual. Reviewing these plans as well as tracking outcomes against numerous metrics on the ISP scorecards for each state allows The Columbus Organization to proactively determine which Care Coordinators are doing an exceptional job and which Care Coordinators need additional mentoring. As a result of these reviews, The Columbus Organization identifies specific areas that will be enhanced through additional training for the care coordinators to improve quality of service to the individuals.
The Columbus Organization maintains a hierarchy of councils to oversee these quality efforts. The Executive Quality & Compliance Committee (EQCC), which consists of six members of The Columbus Organization executive team, provides oversight of, and direction to, the company’s Quality & Compliance Program, and reviews monitoring reports/corrective actions every month. Reporting to the EQCC, the Compliance and Quality Council (CQC) comprises the Operational State Care Coordination management who have direct oversight of the provision of Care Coordination services. The CQC ensures that the company provides day-to-day operational oversight of and direction to all employees on the company’s Quality & Compliance Program.
The Columbus Organization regularly sends out Satisfaction Surveys to understand, from the individual’s perspective, if they are living a satisfied and meaningful life or if there are areas that could benefit from changes or enhancements to services. A series of questions ask about the person’s satisfaction with the service provided by their support coordinator. A second set of questions in the surveys ask about outcomes related to choosing personal goals, safety, participation in meaningful activities in the community, choosing whether and where to work, and choosing where and with whom to live. The surveys help to understand whether the individual is satisfied with the support being provided and is living a meaningful life, as seen through their own eyes. An additional part of the effort to obtain more feedback will include the implementation of live advisory panels in select states throughout 2020.
In addition to the internal processes, The Columbus Organization is validated from two outside entities. The Columbus Organization is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and certified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Center for Clinical Standards and Quality, as a Quality Improvement Organization (QIO)-like entity.
About The Columbus Organization
The Columbus Organization empowers individuals to realize their meaningful–life goals through nationally recognized care coordination, professional clinical staffing, and quality improvement services for the intellectual/developmental disability (I/DD) or behavioral needs community. Leveraging an unmatched depth of expertise, breadth of resources, diversity of thinking, and dedication to finding the most appropriate, personalized solutions for clients, The Columbus Organization provides a wide array of services specifically for families, individuals and the organizations that support them. For more information, visit www.columbusorg.com.