The Global Appraisal of Individual Needs (GAIN) Progressive Approach to Assessment
The Global Appraisal of Individual Needs (GAIN) originated in 1993 as a collaborative effort between clinicians, researchers, and policymakers to create a comprehensive and standardized bio-psychosocial assessment tool. Dr. Michael Dennis, Senior Research Psychologist and Director of the GAIN Coordinating Center, led this project through the development of the GAIN Initial (GAIN-I). His goal was to bridge the gap between clinical research and the growing movement toward evidence-based practice.
The GAIN has developed into a progressive and integrated family of instruments with a series of measures and computer applications designed to support a number of treatment practices, including:
- Initial screenings (GAIN-SS)
- Brief interventions and referrals (GAIN-Q3)
- Standardized clinical assessments for diagnosis, placement, and treatment planning (GAIN-I)
- Monitoring change in clinical status, service utilization, and costs to society (GAIN-M90)
- Subgroup and program-level needs assessment, evaluation, and secondary analysis
The GAIN family of instruments is appropriate for use with adolescents, young adults and adults from a variety of populations in various levels of care. Some of these include:
- Outpatient/Intensive outpatient programs
- Short-term/Long-term residential programs
- Therapeutic communities
- Justice programs
- School-based programs
- Welfare programs
- Primary health care programs
- Co-occurring disorder programs
- Drug courts
- Private practices
- Child and family services
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Consistent with the Ohio Department of Medicaid’s (ODM) and OhioMHAS, rules to promote high-quality service, the IHBT Fidelity Tool was developed to ensure compliance with IHBT service delivery standards. Providers choosing to bill services under Medicaid’s IHBT bundled rate must be certified. Certification assures minimum fidelity standards are being met.