Georgia Quality Management System - Department of Behavioral ...

GQMS Year 3 Annual ReportJuly 2010 – June 2011Georgia’s providers of services have expressed a need for training in several areas to support theirprocesses and meet the standards of the state. Topics include a holistic approach to services, health andsafety plans including self-preservation skills, and how to communicate with individuals who utilizealternative communication styles.Quality Improvement (QI) CouncilsRegion 1This past year, Region 1 QI Council’s main focus was on communication for all stakeholders within theregion. The Council identified the need for a mechanism to provide information and keep allstakeholders informed. Therefore, they developed a quarterly newsletter, The Chatter, a regionalinformational newsletter to share information and communication throughout the region. It is the intentof the council to have the regional office assumes production of the newsletter at some point in thefuture.The Council requested an ad-hoc report from Delmarva for a very specific data report reflecting severalof the highest and lowest scoring elements for the region. Council members were able to identify specificneeds for improvement and discussed how they might develop initiatives to address these in theupcoming year. The council requested that all future reports be developed in this format as it helpedthem pinpoint areas of focus for future action.Region 1 Council struggled with membership after the reorganization from five to six regions. However,they are now working with a full council devoted to quality changes for their region. The council alsofinalized a letter campaign designed to ask all 99 providers to become more involved in regional qualityimprovement activities, such as the Council. Providers were asked to forward the letter to the individualsand families they serve.Region 2Due to the reorganization of the Regions, the Region 2 QI Council welcomed new members this fiscalyear including family advocates and provider representatives, and is now fully staffed. The council alsoelected a new co-chair.To further promote a person centered philosophy, the Council developed a video showing individualsand families sharing what it means to be person centered. People First of Augusta helped sponsor thevideo and several self advocates were interviewed about what their goals are and how person centeredpractices can impact their lives to ensure their team focus is on the person’s wants, needs, and desiresrather than on services.The video was under a continued editing process throughout the first few months of the fiscal year. Thevideo was initially presented at the Joint QI Council meeting in September, 2010; has since beencompleted, debuted and distributed throughout the state. It was shared with council members and________________________________________________________________________________________________August 31, 2011 18