Do You Know the "Truth?"

I am joined to day by guest blogger Tracey Hauser, LCSW, Director of Quality Care.

Many years  ago as an undergraduate majoring in Chemistry  at the University of Rhode Island I was enrolled in a course titled The History of Science. In this course I was introduced  to an idea that I found to be absolutely astonishing.  In a nutshell the idea was that what we consider to be “truth” changes as our understanding of the environment or circumstances change.  Thomas S. Kuhn (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Kuhn) in his very influential book The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962) tells us that  “truth” is not a constant!  Kuhn coined the term “paradigm shift” to describe this idea of “truth" changing and shifting across time.  In Kuhn’s lexicon “ paradigm shift” refers to a radical change in the basic assumptions within the ruling theory of a particular scientific field- a scientific revolution if you will.  

While Kuhn’s work referred specifically to the so-called hard sciences- chemistry, physics etc, his ideas are interesting from  the perspective of what we do as human services professionals.  Moreover, this idea of paradigm shift helps us understand why the treatment models that  we use do change and shift- why the “truth" in our field does change and why we must be aware of these shifts. 

Sound Community Services is committed to providing the very highest quality of services to our clients.   You might ask how do we know if the services we provide are good or not, are valuable to those we serve or not or even if we should consider continuing to do what we do.  In order to answer those questions we collect and analyze much data but we also are committed to the accreditation process.  Accreditation is a process in which an outside agency examines the competency, authority, or credibility of our practice and services.  Accreditation compares what we do to the current accepted paradigms in the field.

 Over the next several months, you will  notice that  we are beginning to spend more of our time and resources in getting ready for our CARF accreditation visit.  Our Director of Quality Care Tracey Hauser, LCSW has ably led our agency in its last two accreditation visits and will do so again for the upcoming 2012 visit.  The high quality of her work has been recognized by CARF and she has been invited to join the ranks of CARF surveyors.  I have asked her to reflect on accreditation and what it means to the agency and her recent experiences in training to become a CARF surveyor.

Gail Lawson, PhD

 Last week I traveled to Tucson, Arizona, courtesy of CARF International – the Commission on the Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities.  The reason?  I was scheduled to attend a three day mock CARF Survey with the goal of becoming a CARF surveyor.  For those of you who worked for SCSI in May 2009 – the date of our last 3-day CARF accreditation survey – you may remember the numerous preparations for that visit.  You may have met the survey team or participated in the exit conference before they left.  For those of you newer to the agency – you hopefully remember hearing about CARF during your orientation process. 

CARF International accredits behavioral health programs across the country, in Canada and abroad.  CARF has identified standards for practice in the behavioral health care field that address both the business aspects of agency operation, as well as the services provided at the program level.  These standards are extensively reviewed and annually revised, not only by behavioral healthcare professionals, but by persons served, family members and other stakeholders.  Accrediting bodies, like CARF, promote the best practices in the field, as well as act as a barometer for where the field is moving.   CARF utilizes professional peer surveyors to conduct each survey.  While it is the organization’s responsibility to demonstrate its conformance to each of the CARF standards at the time of the survey visit, CARF surveyors are responsible for offering suggestions on ways the organization can improve services and organizational functioning.  This consultative approach is a cornerstone of the CARF survey process.  CARF surveyors are not on the lookout for mistakes, but rather seeking to identify conformance with the intent of the CARF standards.  “CARF accreditation signals a service provider’s commitment to continually improving services, encouraging feedback and serving the community.”  http://www.carf.org/home/

What we present to CARF during each survey visit is our best work at that time - the ‘truth’ as it were.  Accreditation through CARF provides us with a snapshot of our current services and program operation, as well as helpful consultation from professionals in the field on ways to meet, or improve how we meet, those standards with which we struggle.  These standards historically have included ways to improve service accessibility; ensuring connections between assessments, progress notes and goals; and inclusion of natural supports and family in program planning.  For the last 15 years, CARF has found this agency worthy of accreditation at the highest level – three year accreditation.  As I write this, our next survey awaits us on the horizon, 584 days away, in 2012.  Many of you may have heard me say that CARF is not a 4-letter word.  Instead, it is an opportunity for demonstrating our recovery-focused culture, our person-centered planning, and our commitment to quality services.  

  

Tracey Hauser, LCSW 



Be Well!