Strategies for Implementing Performance Measurement in Behavioural Health Care Organisations

Performance measurement provides a basis for demonstrating accountability and a foundation for performance improvement. Nonetheless, practitioners tend to be cautious of attempts to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of behavioural services, particularly given the qualitative nature of some treatment interventions (such as process-oriented therapies) and the limitations associated with many mental health instruments. This article examines the rationale for resisting performance measurement and then describes actions that behavioural health care organisations can take to create a systematic approach to collecting and using these measures to improve organisational effectiveness and client services. Examples from the author's work setting a publicly funded psychiatric hospital for children and adolescents, are provided to demonstrate how these actions have been operationalised.