Evaluating the Impact of California’s Full Service Partnership Program Using a Multidimensional Measure of Outcomes

Abstract

This study evaluates the impact of California's full-service partnership (FSP) program using a multidimensional measure of outcomes. The FSP program is a key part of California's 2005 Mental Health Services Act. Secondary data were collected from the Consumer Perception Survey, the Client and Service Information System, and the Data Collection and Reporting System, all data systems which are maintained by the California Department of Mental Health. The analytic sample contained 39,681 observations of which 588 were FSP participants (seven repeated cross-sections from May 2005 to May 2008). We performed instrumental variables (IV) limited information maximum likelihood and IV Tobit analyses. The marginal monthly improvement in outcomes of services for FSP participants was approximately 3.5 % higher than those receiving usual care with the outcomes of the average individual in the program improving by 33.4 %. This shows that the FSP program is causally effective in improving outcomes among the seriously mentally ill.