Development Objectives

Polaris-CD was designed to reflect the needs of each of the various stakeholders involved in the treatment and recovery process. The guidelines used in the development of Polaris-CD lay the groundwork for measurement that is scientifically sound, organizationally practical and valuable to PsyberMetrics’ clients. The development objectives include:

• Psychometrically strong measures

• Low administrative and respondent burden

• Easy integration into routine clinical practice

• Clinically actionable information during the course of treatment

• Actionable systems-level information which meets or exceeds the “outcomes” requirements of accrediting organizations

• A sound empirical basis for system decision parameters (e.g., threshold values for services matching; identification of high risk cases)

• Ongoing refinement and improvement in performance with the ultimate goal of predicting the type of treatment which will be the most effective for a patient entering treatment

• Detection of inauthentic responding (data quality indicators)