The DMH survey differs in that it provides for qualitative results. It allows someone to express satisfaction with services as a whole, and dissatisfaction with parts of it as well. The second phase of the project involved training teams made up of consumers on how to use the survey. During phase three, now in progress, evaluation teams in groups of two to four, interview consumers and staff at mental health centers to assess program strengths and weaknesses. Considerable planning and preparation go into site visits.
Teams announce and arrange visits to accommodate the centers'work schedules.
They guarantee participants complete anonymity and encourage them to respond in their own words. Because this project is run primarily by consumers, employs consumers as interviewers and focuses on consumers for feedback about the quality of programs and services, it is considered a cutting edge process. While making a presentation at a session on consumer surveys, I found out that DMH has the only program with consumers as researchers, interviewers and managers. The other programs still use staff members as evaluators. Through this process, the survey results become another inhouse tool for monitoring and improving the quality of care.