Lessons from the Field. Continuous Quality Improvement: A multiyear HMRF case study of best practices in outreach program excellence

ObjectiveWe describe the process and outcomes of developing continuous quality improvement (CQI) procedures for a multiyear, multimillion-dollar healthy marriage and responsible fatherhood (HMRF) relationship enhancement education program. We present lessons learned, including adaptations used to move all programming online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. BackgroundContinuous quality improvement (CQI) is a set of best practices that are often neglected in outreach programming due to challenges associated with funding, available expertise, and fear of underwhelming results. However, this practice provides valuable insight and benefits to programs and participants and can be implemented without interrupting program delivery. MethodWe developed a "living" CQI plan over the course of 5 years using three sources of data to track, evaluate, and inform CQI high-performance decision-making: program data, fidelity data, and outcome data. ResultsA sample of the preliminary descriptive quantitative results is presented including program registrations and show rates, facilitator effectiveness scores, intervention outcomes, and participant responses to online delivery to illustrate how the three types of data collected are used in the SMART Couples Project to support CQI efforts. Conclusions and ImplicationsOur study demonstrates the benefits of using CQI as a powerful tool for program improvement, with staff and participants alike. It is the nature of the CQI process to be amenable to changes, including unforeseen disruptions in program delivery. Implementing an intentional formative and summative CQI strategy provides benefits to social outreach and family life education programs across delivery formats and contexts.