Quality Improvement - CQL

 

AHRC Suffolk is proud to be a CQL Accredited organization. The Council of Quality Leadership, (CQL) have for decades been leaders in the area of establishing standards and accreditation for organizations providing support to the elderly and disabled. CQL provides a unique method for conducting conversations with the individuals we support to find out what each person truly wants from his or her life. The method used is called Personal Outcome Measures®.

 

The Personal Outcome Measures® focus on the items and issues that matter most to people.

Each of the three words in Personal Outcome Measures® shows how this approach is different:

 

1. They’re PERSONAL

What we do is determined by each person for him/herself. Each person’s assessment for quality of life is unique to him or her. The definitions for quality of life are set by the person, with the help of people who care about him/her and know him/her very well.

 

2. They’re OUTCOME Based

How we work is guided by what’s happening in the person’s life – so that the individual is experiencing real outcomes related to the personal expectations for quality that he/she has defined.

 

3. They’re MEASURED Differently

We can’t look at personal outcomes without measuring quality differently. Traditional systems measure how services are delivered or what the organization does. CQL’s approach to measurement looks at personal quality of life and addresses questions of priority and relevance for the person based on individual life priorities.

 

The information learned will be used to support individuals and plan for a future that makes them happier and more satisfied with life. This person-centered approach is one that AHRC Suffolk will incorporate into day-to-day operations with the expectation that the quality of the supports we provide will be enhanced.

 

POM’s focus on five areas of a person’s life:  My Human Security, My Community, My Relationships, My Choices, and My Goals - allowing the interviewer to learn what is most important to that individual at that moment in their life. These answers are recorded on AHRC Suffolk’s My Personal Page tool that is revisited and updated by the person and their Circle of Support throughout the year and updated as his or her wants and needs for a meaningful life change and grow.