Opportunity
Working with our partners at the National Association of State Directors of Development Disabilities Services (NASDDDS), individual state agencies, and self-advocates, we measure the performance of services and supports for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities—both within and across states. This groundbreaking data collection initiative is improving the quality of service delivery nationwide, and has produced the world’s largest dataset on outcomes for people with IDD.
Approach
Establishing Quality Measures
Through in-person and mail-in surveys of service users and their families, National Core Indicators (NCI) helps states measure crucial elements of person-centered planning, outcomes, and satisfaction in domains such as:
- Service Coordination and Access
- Relationships and Community Inclusion
- Rights, Choices, and Decision-making
- Employment Status and Goals
- Health, Welfare, and Safety
Each year, NCI produces national and state-specific reports detailing the data aggregated at the state level. The reports are available on the NCI website at www.nationalcoreindicators.org. NCI also provides publicly available tools to help states understand and report on their data, including an online Chart Generator.
Measuring performance
By helping to develop measures, data collection instruments, and protocols—and by aggregating, cleaning, analyzing and reporting on the data—we help give states a broad view of how their publicly funded services are impacting the quality of life and outcomes of service recipients. States use the data to track their own performance over time, to compare results across states, and to establish national benchmarks.
Improving systems
State DD agency directors and managers use NCI data to:
- Establish annual program goals and objectives.
- Evaluate the state’s performance scores on NCI domains compared to scores in other states. This has been helpful in securing resources, for changing policies, and to suggest implementation strategies.
- Improve program and policy planning.
- Assist state leaders in formulating policy positions and direct staff activities in key areas.
- Facilitate productive discussions and activities with the state’s quality advisory council’s work on outcomes valued by self-advocates.
Impact
NCI supports state efforts to strengthen long-term care policy, inform quality assurance activities, and compare performance with national norms. Staff also publish data briefs on specific areas of interest, and the results of analyses of the multi-state dataset have been published in academic research journals and presented at conferences.