Findings from an evaluation of a model system for delivering mental health services to youth were reassessed to determine the robustness of key findings to the use of methodologies unavailable to the original analysts. These analyses address a key concern about earlier findings--that the quasi-experimental design involved the comparison of two…

The importance of measurement feedback system (MFS) for the improvement of mental health services for youths is discussed. As feedback obtained from clients and families is subject to distortions, a standardized MFS including clinical processes, contexts, outcomes, and feedback to clinicians and supervisors is necessary for improvement in quality…

Describes evaluations of two programs, one designed to improve mental health outcomes for children and adolescents referred for mental health treatment, and the other designed to provide comprehensive mental health services to children and adolescents. In both studies, the effects of systems of care are primarily limited to system level outcomes,…

This study demonstrates the usefulness of cluster analytic patterns of care in a sample of 979 children receiving federal mental health services. Six patterns were identified. These service-utilization clusters provide a useful and easily understood way to summarize children's quantity of use of various mental health services. (SLD)

A study tested the efficacy of a multicomponent parent training curriculum with caregivers of children receiving mental health services (n=250). The parent group intervention was found to affect significantly two factors critical to increasing caregiver empowerment, knowledge of the mental health services system, and mental health services…

Three customary performance guidelines (therapeutic relationship, satisfaction, and parent involvement) believed to be indicators of quality care were tested for their ability to account for improved mental health outcomes among 240 adolescent clients. Results showed statistically significant relationships between these commonly accepted measures…

This paper critiques current models for evaluation of mental health services provided to children and adolescents with emotional disturbances and offers an alternative model. The most popular model, Donabedian's tripartite model, is described. This model separately evaluates three domains: (1) structure (characteristics of the care providers,…

Examines forces motivating reform in mental health services, suggesting that mental health practitioners and researchers have relied on traditional and apparently unsuccessful methods (with little or no scientific support) to ensure service quality and effectiveness; debunking six myths about mental health services; and suggesting that…

In order to determine whether expenditures for mental health could be reduced and quality improved, Congress mandated that the Department of Defense conduct a demonstration project utilizing a wraparound mental health service system for child and adolescent military dependents. A longitudinal quasiexperimental design was used to evaluate the…

This study investigated the findings of a previous study on the effectiveness of the Fort Bragg Child and Adolescent Mental Health Demonstration Project, a program that provided a comprehensive approach to the delivery of mental health and substance abuse services to a population of military-related children residing within the Fort Bragg…