Design and test of a system for tracking referrals

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Child Development Programs
• Program Evaluation

Background:

• Many health and welfare programs rely on inter-agency referrals for service provision.
• Referring agencies often lack confirmation of service receipt by clients, hindering program goal attainment.
• Developmental Evaluation Centers (DECs) serve diverse populations, reflecting this referral model.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a system for tracking families receiving services from North Carolina's DECs.
• To determine if recommended services are received and identify reasons for non-receipt.
• To assess the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of a family tracking system.

Main Methods:

• A developmental evaluation family tracking system was designed.
• The system involved contacting families 6 and 18 months post-evaluation via telephone.
• Tracking forms were utilized to gather information on service receipt and family needs.

Main Results:

• The tracking system was piloted in the Greensboro DEC with 67 families, with 61 forms completed.
• Staff time dedicated to tracking was minimal (2.7% of working hours over 3 months).
• The cost per case was low, $7.15 for immediate tracking and $14.49 including additional activities.

Conclusions:

• The developed tracking system effectively provides essential information for achieving program goals.
• The system is cost-effective and efficient, requiring minimal staff resources.
• The system was successfully implemented across all 11 North Carolina DECs in 1976.