Learning from Those with Life Experience: Client Voices in the Understanding the Value of Centralized Services Study

The VOCS study collected information from clients during the planning phase of the study and as part of qualitative data collection. This brief’s intended audience is those clients who contributed to the study, and the purpose is to provide clients with a summary of how the study team incorporated the experiences and insights clients shared into the study. In addition, the brief provides an example for other researchers of how the VOCS study team closed the feedback loop with the clients engaged throughout the study.

Several themes emerged from our conversations with clients of CCRCs:

• A key benefit of centralized community resource centers is a single point-of-contact (commonly referred to as a “case manager” or “service coordinator”) who can help clients find services they need.
• Having staff with similar life experiences as clients is important.
• All staff in CCRCs should treat participants with dignity and respect and understand the communities they serve.
• Clients like being able to receive many services at a single location, but they want more information up front about the range of services available. Clients would also appreciate more access to transportation and other supports. 

The study team listened to clients’ input and then used their feedback in the design of the VOCS study site visits and dissemination products. For example, greater emphasis was placed on understanding how partner agencies in CCRCs understood the needs of their clients and the ways in which staff showed respect to clients. The study team also asked staff about the strengths of the communities they serve and how staff use client feedback in designing and improving services. Finally, the study team developed this short brief to highlight what clients shared with the study team and how their input was used. 
 

The VOCS study included three components. First, the team engaged interested individuals and experts. Interested individuals included federal staff, individuals who have experience in the design of services and supports for families at a systems level, and practitioners and individuals with lived experience accessing centralized services. Meetings with these individuals focused on key topics such as what they hoped to learn from the project, how they thought findings from the project could inform their work, suggestions for CCRCs to engage in qualitative data collection, and feedback on the study design and dissemination. In addition, four experts from different backgrounds and fields provided input on the study’s design, data collection plans, and draft reports. 

Second, the team conducted a literature review that summarized findings from other literature reviews conducted for prior studies on centralized services and from 27 articles identified through a targeted search of academic databases and gray literature, as well as suggestions from federal staff and contractors involved in coordinated services research. The literature review laid the foundation and identified gaps in the research for further in-depth exploration through qualitative data collection during three site visits.

Third, the VOCS team collected qualitative data during in-person visits to Blackfeet Manpower One-Stop Center (Browning, Montana), Neighborhood Place (Louisville, Kentucky), and Wayne Metro Community Action Agency (Detroit, Michigan). The team conducted semi-structured interviews with program leadership, staff, and partners; focus groups with clients; and observations of partner meetings and physical space including lobbies and general office layouts.

This brief summarizes information gathered from clients as part of the first and third study components. The study team prioritized learning from those with life experiences to help inform the study’s design as part of early meetings with interested individuals and groups. In addition, the study team included client focus groups during the site visits to hear directly from clients about their experiences with accessing and receiving services from CCRCs.
 

Brown, Elizabeth and Pamela Holcomb. 2022. Learning from Those with Life Experience: Client Voices in the Understanding the Value of Centralized Services Study. OPRE Report #2022-247, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

This study is registered on Open Science Framework under the title Understanding the Value of Centralized Services. Information collections related to this project have been reviewed and approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs under OMB #0970-0587. Related materials are available at the Understanding the Value of Centralized Services Study page on RegInfo.gov.

The most currently approved documents are accessible by clicking on the ICR Ref. No. with the most recent conclusion date. To access the information collections (e.g., interviews, surveys, protocols), click on View Information Collection (IC) List. Click on View Supporting Statement and Other Documents to access other supplementary documents.