Categorizing adult protective services programs by investigation and quality assurance practices

Without a dedicated federal funding stream and evidence-based practices, state adult protective services (APS) programs developed with a wide variation in policies and practices based on the influence of adjacent systems, the state culture for human services, and community needs. Using data from a recent national evaluation of APS programs, this study used principal component analysis and cluster analysis to examine whether APS programs can be categorized by the level of their implementation of investigation and quality assurance (QA) policy and practices. To further understand factors that may contribute to program quality and consistency, we compared these clusters on their state characteristics, APS program administrative structures, and system-level outcomes. Recently adopted federal regulations require a greater degree of standardization for APS programs, and as new federal funding is used for program improvement, findings suggest opportunities for APS programs to improve by adopting additional investigatory and QA practices.