Better Outcomes Now Blog

ORS and SRS: Understanding the Psychometrics

In this historical series of blog posts discussing the journey to client-directed therapeutic services, the previous post shared how the clinical process of the Partners for Change Outcome Management...

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10 Qualities and Actions of Effective Therapists

While there are many characteristics that could be mentioned, my list of 10 qualities and actions of effective therapists is based on the common factors that account for change (see graphic below),...

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Types of Outcome Measures in Mental Health

Measuring outcomes in behavioral health has become a quagmire of misinformation and marketing buzzwords. Given that the three main accrediting bodies (i.e., the Joint Commission, Council on...

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Demonstrating Value for Behavioral Health Reimbursement

Changes are underway in reimbursement for behavioral health services. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has launched MIPS, the Merit-based Incentive Payment System, which began to...

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Couples Therapy Conference Keynote Presented by Dr. Barry Duncan

Dr. Barry Duncan presented the keynote speech this past weekend at the Harvard Medical School and Cambridge Health Alliance conference on “Treating Couples.” Over 300 professionals attended this...

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Measurement Based Care Solutions: Questioning the Evidence

First, let’s get the terms straight. What we and others in the psychotherapy literature have called “systematic client feedback” (or just client or patient feedback) or “routine outcome monitoring...

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How Routine Outcome Monitoring Benefits Therapists

Let’s face it, most of us didn’t become therapists so that we could appear on the show Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. While sailing the Caribbean on a yacht while eating delicate hors d’oeuvres...

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Results in the Real World: Serving the Impoverished

A 2018 meta-analysis by feedback pioneer, Michael Lambert unequivocally demonstrates that PCOMS significantly improves outcomes. Lambert et al. (2018) concluded:

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Why Are Outcome Measures Important?

The good news is that psychotherapy is effective with many clients. The bad news is that not everyone benefits. We need to accept the fact that some clients may not improve under our care....

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Identifying At-Risk Clients: Why I Love PCOMS

A major benefit of the Partners for Change Outcome Management System (PCOMS) is the identification of clients who are not benefitting, permitting new directions to be collaboratively charted. PCOMS...

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