Congratulations to our January NIATx E-news Quiz Winners

Larisa A. Traga, MSW, ASW, CAP
Treatment Specialist/Juvenile Drug Court
Alcohol and Drug Program
Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health Services
Santa Maria, CA

Jodie Bither
Clinical Services Director
SMART Management, Inc.
Providence, RI  

Larisa and Jodie both took the January challenge: Name the one NIATx principle that has more power to promote a successful improvement than all the other NIATx principles combined. Answer: To understand and involve the customer. They’ll each receive a copy of The NIATX Model: Process Improvement in Behavioral Health

Here’s what the NIATx Model says about the Number One principle of NIATx:

“A company that takes the time and effort to get inside the head of its customer, to figure out his needs and get regular feedback along the way, is far more likely to succeed in its improvement efforts. It’s easy for a company to assume that it knows what its customers want, but to do so is a mistake. Throw any assumptions out the window and begin the project wit the mindset that you don’t know what the customer wants or how he feels When you start with a blank slate, you’ll be forced to open up your eyes to the customer’s point of view and to solicit and value customer input. The project will be much the better for it.” 

Read how this principle aligns with the Discovery House mission to create a Recovery Oriented System of Care in all its clinic sites in our interview with challenge winner Jodie Bither.