Outcome Management provides the agency with the ability to implement different types of assessments to identify the issues and needs of children and families. Agencies may configure and run multiple types of assessments based on their preference of assessment instruments. Assessments use Intelligent Evidence Gathering™ (IEG) to present questions, applicable answers and collect assessment data. Either Cúram Decision Assist™ (CDA) or Cúram Eligibility Rules™ (CER) can be used to determine the assessment results.
Using the assessment results, the family and caseworker can identify the outcomes desired as a part of the planning process. Agencies typically assess children and families to measure their current situation in relation to one or more factors. Agencies do not always have the capacity to address all of the issues identified by an assessment and must concentrate on the most urgent needs. The assessment framework supports factor prioritization. Factor prioritization allows caseworkers to prioritize factors identified by the assessment as needing urgent or further attention. For example, if a person's assessment results indicate that substance abuse is an identified issue, these results can be prioritized so that the caseworker attempts to address this factor before any other issues are addressed.