Simple measures of progress and outcome in the evaluation of mental health services.

There is a tautology regarding the use of progress and outcome measures. Such measures are easy to use in a reliable and valid fashion if the language of the measures is used as an integral part of (a) treatment planning and progress review, (b) clinical supervision, and (c) program management. The paper describes example guidelines and uses of measures in each of these functions. Also included are listings of scales with documented reliability and validity (by target population) and some sources for finding computer software for scoring some of the scales.