How do we recognize Exceptions and create Indicators?

Point "A" – Potential Clients: Returning our attention to the Helping Triangle – see Figure 1 - let's start our consideration of Indicators and Interventions with Potential Clients. They are the target group from which SSI clients come. We can think about Potential Clients as an element in the SSI eco system. The function of this element is to provide appropriate clients to receive SSI services. The element is functioning correctly if it produces a sufficient supply of people who appropriately engage with SSI services. It is, conversely, not functioning correctly if the supply of people is insufficient to fully use all available services, if the people who are supplied are inappropriate, or if those who are appropriate do not successfully use SSI services.

This simple understanding of the element's – Potential Clients - function shows us how to recognize Indicators exceptions are present. A real-world human services agency situation would certainly be more sophisticated, but our SSI example suffices here. When there are exceptions present, we see one or more Indicators. To illustrate, we determine there are not enough people from the target group requesting services. - We know this by tracking and analyzing how many people request services. - This may be because we have not correctly identified the target group, or we may not have adequately worked with the group to prompt its members to request services. We know people are usually referred to SSI by someone else, so we may not be working adequately with people who may refer other people. We start with the Indicator – insufficient people requesting services – and then develop possible explanations accounting for the status of the Indicator. We know there is an exception in the SSI eco system and we proceed to diagnose the cause. Once we diagnose the cause, we intervene. – Conversely, there may be too many people requesting services, resulting in waiting lists and long delays for people needing help. This situation is also an exception needing attention.

To facilitate both the diagnostic step and the intervention, we meet with Potential Clients and with people who would likely refer clients, sharing our supporting data with them. We let them know about our concern, including letting them know we are not having enough people request services. We enlist their help with understanding why and with how to correct the exception. We develop additional intervention strategies, but we start with a clear statement of what the function of the element is – its purpose. We then determine what the Indicators are showing us about any exceptions present. When an Indicator is present, we diagnose the cause and develop strategies to intervene. Thinking about another Indicator assists our understanding here.

It may be there are enough people requesting services, but a significant number of people requesting services are not appropriate. We know this by keeping data about who requests services and whether they are appropriate. We start by revisiting how we established the target group. Perhaps the target group members are not actually potential clients. We may be targeting the wrong people. Our work with the target group may be inadequate or somehow misleading its members about who should use agency services. We may need to work more with people who refer other people to clarify who they should and should not refer. As we carefully diagnose the exception and its cause, we may conclude we should reconfigure the target group, provide more training for SSI staff members who work with the target group, develop better literature about SSI and its services for potential clients and for people who refer clients, or pursue other strategies to be sure our intervention is actually focused on what is causing the exception.

From our understanding of the function of the element, another Indicator might be whether or not clients successfully use SSI services. We develop ways of tracking this outcome. We carefully define what we mean by successful and unsuccessful. Once we are clear about what we mean by those terms, we proceed to diagnose the cause of unsuccessful use. Let me simply emphasize here we want feedback from clients who do and do not use services successfully. They are the best source of data about their behavior. Additionally, we want to know what service Providers think about the exception and what insight the people who refer clients may have. There are reasons for the exception. For example, some people using services may not have adequate resources such as child care or transportation needed to participate in services. Our task is to find those reasons. Only then can we responsibly and effectively intervene.