The Kentucky Division of Mental Retardation is taking part in an important research and quality assurance project that reflects changes in the way service quality is measured.  This effort has been spearheaded by the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NASDDDS) and the Human Services Research Institute (HSRI).  It is the Core Indicators Project (CIP). The project's aim is to develop nationally recognized performance and outcome indicators that will enable developmental disability policy makers to benchmark the performance of their state against the performance of other states. CIP performance indicators also enable each state developmental disabilities agency to track system performance and outcomes from year to year on a consistent basis.

The Core Indicators Project is a collaboration among participating NASDDDS member state agencies and HSRI, with the aim of developing a systematic approach to performance and outcome measurement. The adoption of performance indicators as a quality assurance technique is both a consequence of the change in expectations as well as a method for maintaining a focus on person-centered outcomes. Indicators focus on important life dimensions such as rights, health and safety, choice and decision making, and satisfaction. Through the project, participating states pool their resources and knowledge to create performance monitoring systems, identify common performance indicators, work out comparable data collection strategies, and share results.  Kentucky joined the Core Indicators Project in 1999.  The Kentucky Core Indicators Project is managed by the Interdisciplinary Human Development Institute at the University of Kentucky.  This is done in an effort to ensure that we obtain objective data that meets the highest standards of survey research methodology. 

There are currently 22 states participating in the CIP.  Each year, a random sample of adult consumers who are currently receiving services is selected to participate in the consumer interview.  One of Kentucky’s goals is to offer the opportunity to be interviewed to every person receiving services through the Division of Mental Retardation once every five years.   Results of Kentucky’s first two years of project participation are now available. Thus far, Kentucky has interviewed over 1200 consumers, families and caregivers and received over 1200 mail surveys from families of consumers receiving services.

In 2000, over 500 Kentucky consumers and their families took part in the Core Indicators consumer survey.  In several regards, Kentucky was ahead of the curve, compared to overall results from participating states.  Kentucky showed a high proportion of consumers who have a close friend as well as a high proportion of people who could see their friends when they want.  With respect to service coordination, Kentuckians indicated that they could contact their service coordinators when they wanted to, and that service coordinators were responsive to their needs. 

Additional information regarding the Core Indicators Project, including the specific indicators being tracked and reports from previous phases of the project, can be obtained at www.hsri.org and clicking the link for Core Indicators and Performance Measures. If you have any questions that are not answered at this web address, please contact Kathy Sheppard-Jones, CIP Project Manager at 859.257.8104 / kjone@uky.edu.

The Kentucky Core Indicators Project is funded through the Kentucky Cabinet for Health Services.