ECO Center Family Outcomes Community of Practice 11/10/2009 Angela Deal, DPH; Patrice Neal, FPG; Melanie Long, FSN Please do not copy or distribute without permission of authors 1

NC Part C Survey Background Use NCSEAM family outcome survey -- mailed Average return rate 20% every year Returned surveys have not been representative of the population served 2

Improvement Strategies (APR 2009) Pre-verify addresses to reduce number of undeliverable surveys Surveys mailed to families currently receiving services vs. at exit Postcards hand-delivered by service coordinators to families to be expecting surveys in the mail Providers asked to also remind families to expect survey in mail Follow-up with families of minority populations who historically have a low return rate Requested input from subcommittee of ICC on ways to improve return rate and families’ understanding of the survey process 3

PILOT PROJECT Committee brainstormed multiple options Selected most feasible: small pilot Ultimate goal more representative and useful family data  Trained, unbiased, local parents Provide information Offer assistance and support Encourage participation Determine if approach results in improved return rate Obtain feedback about survey and process Collect data on time, expense, usefulness, practicality Develop recommendations 4

COLLABORATION A joint project of: NC Collaborative Outcomes Project (GSEG)of the FPG Child Development Institute at UNC-CH Child and Family Outcomes Committee of the NC Interagency Coordinating Council Family Support Network (FSN)of North Carolina Family Support Network/HOPE Family Support Network of Central Carolina Greensboro and Morganton/Hickory CDSAs Children’s Developmental Services Agencies in association with  NC Early Intervention Services: Together We Grow Infant-Toddler Program 5

PREPARATION Site selection (2) More urban/larger and more rural/smaller Close ties between CDSAs and local FSN affiliate Shared staff and on-site presence Capacity and mission Willingness to “volunteer” Training Previous Support Parent training, incl. Confidentiality Developed in-depth Caller Guide Pre- and Post- training at each site (input & feedback) On-going TA for questions, clarification 6

LOCAL PARENT CALLERS 3 at smaller, more rural site and 5 at larger more urban One Spanish speaking parent caller at each site Sent local personalized flyer in advance Calling times flexible, mainly in evenings Paid hourly rate by grant partner Referred to Caller Guide Key points (‘non-script’, scenarios, resources) Talked to parent or left message Used tracking forms Asked follow-up questions (evaluate pilot) 7

“Detective” work Obtain replacements as needed Offer a children’s book as thank-you for answering questions about survey and process Opportunity for outreach and connections provide info about local FSN and activities offered Shared thoughts and opinions on pilot  Challenges: Unable to contact wrong/disconnected phone #s, no voic  Highlights: Appreciative parents LOCAL PARENT CALLERS 8

What We Learned ~ 1000 calls were made (~ 600 families on both call lists) 75% successful (40% spoke to parent; 35% left message)  RETURN RATE INCREASED Site % Previous year: 14% increase of 143% Site % Previous year: 19% increase of 41% State average = 21.1% National average = overall 33%; NCSEAM 31%; census 32% mailed: distributed 26%; returned 30% 9

>80% said it was helpful to get a call ~1/3 said they would not have returned without reminder > 90% said they understood survey purpose 63% overall recommended calling in future (61% White; 84% Black; 71% Hispanic; 78% Spanish-speaking) Differences by Ethnicity/Language Spanish speakers twice as likely to answer no/not sure if they would return survey without call; higher %-age did not understand purpose: 15% (small n) compared to <3% English-speaking; more likely to say survey was too long, not easy to fill out, & took longer to complete What We Learned Follow-up Evaluation Questions asked to Families by Parent Callers 10

Next Steps Prelim report to state ICC Committee review results Develop recommendations Present full final report and recommendations to ICC and EI Branch Share materials and process can be adapted across EC agencies YOUR THOUGHTS, QUESTIONS, IDEAS?? 11

Contact Information Angela G. Deal, ACSW, LCSW, ITFS Regional Consultant Early Intervention Branch, Department of Public Health 1429 E. Marion St., Suite 5 Shelby, NC Patrice Neal, PhD Director, NC Collaborative Outcomes Project FPG Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 521 S. Greensboro Street Carrboro, NC Melanie Long Parent Co-Chair, NC-ICC Child & Family Outcomes Committee Family Support Network/HOPE P. O. Box 5413 Hickory, NC