Quality Framework

In October 2017, the Department of Families and Abilities Manitoba entered into a partnership to develop a quality improvement framework for Community Living disABILITY Service (CLdS), the program that provides services and supports to adults with an intellectual disability. Phase one of the project was completed in April 2019.

In part, the first phase of the project set out to identify an outcome measurement tool that could be used to gather data on quality of life indicators of people receiving CLdS-funded services in Manitoba.

Download the Phase 1 Quality Framework Report (PDF 145KB)

Phase One

The Phase One final report recommended the use of the Personal Outcome Measures® (POM) Tool, created and administered by The Council on Quality and Leadership. The POM is a valid and reliable tool used to gather quality of life information from supported individuals. The questions are conversational in nature and aim to determine whether quality of life indicators are present for the individual and whether supports and services are present to help achieve those outcomes.

Phase Two

Phase Two of the project was designed to implement several of the recommendations identified in Phase One. Specifically, the goal of Phase Two of the project was to increase capacity for services to support good lives for people with intellectual disabilities by:

Completing the stakeholder engagement process of Phase One of the quality improvement work;
Engaging with the Council on Quality and Leadership (CQL) to pilot and evaluate the recommended outcome measurement tool, Personal Outcome Measures tool in Manitoba; and,
Introduce the Leading Practice Guidelines and support engagement with service providers to build capacity to utilize the resources and guidance articulated in the Guidelines.

Phase Two of the project was completed in December 2022 and a formal report was delivered to government along with a number of recommendations for next steps listed below. A formal proposal for the next phase was created and a response is currently pending.

Recommendations:

Communicate what we have learned during this pilot by creating plain language, accessible summaries of this report and distribute them publicly. These may include an infographic, one page summary as well as a more detailed summary.
Create and implement a multi-step plan to alleviate the current staffing crisis within CLdS-funded organizations by increasing and maintaining wages for Direct Support Professionals at 60% above current minimum wage. This plan must also maintain robust career paths within the sector by ensuring compression of wages for supervisors and organizational leaders keep pace with increases at the direct service level.
Utilize the Leading Practice Guidelines to guide the development of a comprehensive competency-based training strategy for all CLdS funded organizations. This plan must include a laddered credentialing system that outlines standardized, mandatory training that would be consistently provided throughout all organizations. Duplication of training and orientation would be eliminated, and DSPs would have a clear career path with portable credentials that would be recognized across the sector.
Expand the use of Personal Outcome Measures (POM) to all CLdS funded organizations through a dedicated hub of Certified Trainers and Interviewers. In addition to provided Province-wide training and interviewing, his hub could also administer grant funding requests to organizations who wish to build internal capacity to integrate POM more fully within their organization.
Pilot the use of the Self Assessment Guide for the Leading Practice Guidelines with a wide range of organizations (small/large, urban/rural, etc.). Assist organizations to assess their current practices against the Leading Practice Guidelines and identify the key indicators they wish to change. An operational plan and assistance with change management strategies would be part of the process.
Create the infrastructure and guidance to collect, maintain and disseminate key indicator data sector wide. This data can be used by organizations to benchmark their progress against other similar services as part of their quality management systems. It could inform organizational and governmental decisions about where best to put their time, energy and resources. A consistent sector-wide approach to collecting and sharing data in the areas of staffing, training, risk management and quality of life/service data would be invaluable.
Build capacity within CLdS funded organizations to improve their services and provide key tools and resources to their staff by expanding the suite of eLearnings available to all organizations. This learning journey would enhance the skills and competencies of existing staff and care providers in an accessible and sustainable manner.
Fulfill our collective responsibilities to protect and promote the rights of those we serve by expanding the scope and capacity of Rights Training offered to adults receiving services from CLdS funded organizations.
Create a structure and mechanism to maintain and update the Leading Practice Guidelines so that they stay current and relevant.

Self Assessment:

As part of Phase #2 of the Quality Framework project, a tool has been developed to help Manitoba service providers assess their own services against the Leading Practice Guidelines. Once a self-assessment is complete, the tool strives to support organizations to identify and focus on the areas of opportunity that they wish to work on and to develop an operational plan.

There is a need to pilot the use of the tool with Manitoba service providers to evaluate whether it is user-friendly and accessible and whether it results in the information and guidance that was intended. A preview of the tool can be found here: Self-Assessment Workbook