Outcomes Tools: Key Points About the Resident Survey

The Outcomes Tools Resident Survey – found on the ORH website – is a web-based questionnaire of residents living in recovery housing in Ohio.

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The survey is resident-driven. That means that it is designed for the resident to complete! You, as staff, will help the resident log into the survey, and then the resident will complete it themselves. You can provide support if a resident has a language barrier or they need an accommodation because of a disability, but all of the questions must be answered by the resident. There is an option if a resident leaves without notice, but it only covers the move-out part of the survey. This is the only time a staff member can complete the survey.

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The survey is collected at three time intervals – at move-in, six months into residency, and at move-out. All data collected is time stamped, so it is important that the surveys be completed in the proper time intervals.

The move-in survey needs to be completed within one week of when the resident moves in.

The six-month survey needs to be completed within either one week before or one week after the six-month anniversary of them living in your house.

The move-out survey should be completed within a week or so of the resident moving out. So, if you know someone is going to move out in a couple weeks, they can complete the move out survey then, or you can have them fill it out the day they move out, or you can follow up with them within a week or two after they move out.

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The survey is also not designed to collect personal information. This is done intentionally. The survey does not collect names, Social Security numbers, health data or other protected information. This means that you will not be able to log into the system and find personal or private information about a resident. No one–not ORH, not you, not your county board–will be able to see personal information because the survey doesn’t collect it. So, the survey is compliant with privacy laws, such as HIPAA.

Although we do not track a resident’s individual survey answers, the survey does ask residents the first initial of their mother’s and father’s first names, the year they were born, their gender, their favorite color, their favorite season, etc. Residents can choose not to participate, for any reason. It is 100% voluntary. However, the more residents participate, the better.

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Be sure the resident clicks “submit” at the end of the the resident survey. If “submit” is not clicked, all the data will be lost.

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The survey tracks resident participation through your entire program. Here’s an example: an organization operates both Level III and Level II housing. A resident moves into the Level III and completes the move-in survey in January. Then, the resident transitions to the Level II home in March. In June, after they have been in the program for six months, the resident completes the six-month survey, selecting the home that they currently live in. When the resident moves out, they will complete the move-out survey based on the home they were living in when they moved out.

Residents who have multiple experiences with your program would complete the surveys for each experience with your program. Residents should only complete another move-in survey if they have left your program completely and then return to the program at a later date.

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The survey must be completed in its entirety in one sitting. You cannot save and complete the survey at a later date. It is your responsibility to ensure residents understand how to complete and submit it themselves, which will only take about seven or eight minutes.