QOLIVET: Quality-of-Life Impact Assessment Tool (QIAT)

Background

The aim of the Quality-of-Life Impact Assessment Tool (QIAT) is to offer an online assessment tool that can gather the perceptions of both staff and participants about the extent to which a service impacts positively on Quality of Life (QoL). It is intended to be a universally designed, accessible and easy to use instrument which provides useful program profiling and key performance data that can be used to improve the QoL impact of vocational education and training (VET) and community care (CC) services. The QIAT builds on previous initiatives, reflecting the Schalock/Verdugo model of QoL [1].

The QIAT has been developed by the partners in the QOLIVET project (Enhancing the Quality of Life Impact of inclusive Vocational Education and Training and Community Care) which is co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union. The QOLIVET project builds on knowledge and experience about effective interventions and supports that have a positive impact on QoL across three distinct contexts: mainstream VET, specialised VET and health & social care services. The project set out, on the one hand, to gather the insights of trainers and educators in mainstream services which could have a positive effect on attitudes and approaches adopted in specialised services and, on the other hand, to document the techniques and insights of trainers and carers in specialised settings that have the potential to assist mainstream services to create more inclusive learning environments. The QIAT is intended to contribute to this knowledge exchange and benchmarking process.

What is the QIAT?

The QIAT is an interactive measurement tool that offers a means to assess the extent to which VET and community care services are rated by staff and participants as impacting on the QoL of participants. It is intended to provide useful program profiling and key performance data that can be used to improve the impact of VET and community care services. It is available in a number formats developed on the basis of the principles of universal design for learning.

The tool is designed to provide programme developers, administrators and evaluators, quality managers, and stakeholders with the information they need to engage in a continuous improvement process in the pursuit of more inclusive and effective services.

The QIAT, adopts a similar approach to its predecessor, the Quality-of-Life Impact of Services (QOLIS) tool, but it is easier and more convenient to use as a result of its digital platform. At the same time, the reliability of the impact analysis on QoL has been maintained in the transition from the preceding hardcopy version to the digital one.

Contents

The content of the tool and performance indicators have been subjected to critical review and evaluation by the service providers of the project partnership. As result, the domains and dimensions of the QoL model have been revised and the items have been augmented. In addition, the QIAT is intended to function as a useful tool for organisations that wish to implement the QOLIVET Good Practice Guidelines [2].

The QIAT gathers data on perceptions about the impact of a services on a number of areas of life using a framework which has three categories of indictors.

• Individual Empowerment which has two indicators: Personal Development and Self-Determination.
• Social Participation & Active Inclusion which has four indicators: Interpersonal Relations, Rights & Citizenship, Employability, and Community Participation.
• Wellbeing which has three indicators: Emotional, Physical and Material Wellbeing.

The QIAT is available in a number of different versions which respond to a diversity of individual and organisational needs.

• Participant QIAT versions: There are 5 versions of the QIAT, each of which is designed to respond to the differing needs of service participants and organisations.

1. Full QIAT version: The Full QIAT has 47 items similar to those in the Staff version. It allows a direct comparison between the views of participants and staff. Full QIAT - Explore this version by clicking here
2. Screening QIAT version: The Screening QIAT has 31 items. It takes less time to complete and is intended to give organisations an efficient tool to monitor the views of participants – Screening QIAT Explore this version by clicking here
3. Plain Language QIAT version: The Plain Language QIAT has 31 items which are equivalent to the Screening QIAT which are rephrased in easy-to-read language, supported by examples. The intention is that it can be completed independently by participants with literacy or language challenges. Plain Language QIAT - Explore this version by clicking here
4. Simplified Rating QIAT version: The Simplified Rating QIAT has the same 31 items as the Plain Language version but it uses a less complex rating scale for participants who are numerically challenged. It is supported by examples to clarify the meaning of the items. Simplified Rating QIAT - Explore this version by clicking here
5.  Assisted Rating QIAT version: The Assisted Rating QIAT has 31 items which are equivalent to the Plain Language and Simplified Rating versions. It is designed for individual administration. Each item is broken down into three prompts aimed to help a participant to understand more clearly the intention underlying each item. It uses the simplified rating scale and the supporting examples. Assisted Rating QIAT - Explore this version by clicking here

• Proxy QIAT version: The Proxy QIAT has the same 47 items as the Staff and Full versions. It is intended to be used when it is clear that a participant is either not in a position to, or is unable to, complete any of the participant versions of the QIAT. In such a case, another person, who is familiar with the participant, can complete this version on behalf of the participant. Proxy QIAT - Explore this version by clicking here
• Staff QIAT version: The Staff version of the QIAT has 47 items. It allows staff to rate the extent to which the service in which they are working impacts on the QoL of its participants. It is intended to provide criteria against which the views of service participants can be compared. It is recommended that the staff of a service unit or course complete the QIAT at the beginning of each year. The ratings of service participants can then be compared to the ratings of staff as a way of identifying service strengths and areas for improvement. Staff QIAT - Explore this version by clicking here

Who can use it?

People with disabilities, who are in receipt of a service, are intended be the main users of the QIAT. Sometimes supported by VET and Community Care professionals and sometimes independently, service participants with disabilities will provide the most important feedback on the quality and effectiveness of a service in terms of QoL. The views of service participants are compared to the views of frontline staff about programme impact to identify aspects of QoL that need to be addressed more effectively and unintended positive QoL impacts of services.

The QIAT is available here in five national languages (English, German, Portuguese, Slovenian, Spanish).