Do Referrals Get Better With a Framework?

Anchored to: the validation-study question of whether competency frameworks improve referral decisions, tied back to the 73% referral mismatch statistic

Back in Week 2 of this series, I told you that 73% of our residents once said a referral program wasn’t relevant to their situation. That number has been sitting with me since, because it points to a question nobody has actually tested: does having a clear competency framework, the kind I’ve described these past few weeks, actually make referral decisions better?

It seems obvious that it would. But “seems obvious” isn’t evidence, and this field has too often accepted “seems obvious” in place of an actual validation study. Do case managers equipped with a crisis-informed competency framework make more effective referrals than case managers working from vague, undefined terminology? Does that translate into better outcomes for the people being referred?

Until that study exists, I’m making a reasoned bet, not a proven claim, when I say clearer definitions lead to better referrals. I think that’s the right bet. I also think it’s important to say plainly that it’s a bet and not yet a demonstrated fact.

Would you want to see that number, the actual effect of a framework on referral quality, before adopting one in your own organization?

Author: Sandra Roussel
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