The Launch of the SUS Holiday Gift Project

SUS is taking the annual Holiday Stocking Project to the next level. Last year, we received 800 stockings filled with gifts for our consumers. This year our goal is to bring joy over the holiday season to all 4,000 SUS consumers.

The new innovative SUS Holiday Gift Project is more than just a gift drive; it’s an opportunity to spread the word about SUS and how it improves the fabric of the City of New York. A team of experts from JWT (J. Walter Thompson), in cooperation with FIT students. With the additional support of Rubenstein & Associates PR and New York University, a city wide marketing campaign has been launched. This includes a new website designed specifically for this initiative.

SUS is asking all of our friends to help in this effort by joining our Facebook page, YouTube channel, Twitter feed and/or LinkedIn group, and by visiting http://www.GiftsNYC.org. The numbers of people joining SUS media channels will also help us gain media attention. By joining our social media network, the SUS community will be able to stay informed of the campaign’s progress.

As a part of the project we have developed an option to text in your donation. To get involved please text “SUS” to 20222 and donate $10*. Monies raised will go towards purchasing gifts for our SUS consumers.

To learn more and get involved please visit http://www.GiftsNYC.org. With your help we can make this project a success!

*A one-time donation of $10 will be added to your mobile phone bill or deducted from your prepaid balance. All charges are billed by and payable to your mobile service provider. Service is available on most carriers. Donations are collected for the benefit of the “Services for the UnderServed” by the Mobile Giving Foundation and subject to the terms found at http://www.hmgf.org/t. Messaging & Data Rates May Apply. You can unsubscribe at any time by replying STOP to short code “20222″; Reply HELP to “20222″ for help.

Continuous Quality Improvement

SUS embarked on a mission in 2002 to live up to its core values which includes “Continuous Quality Improvement.” Recognizing that the agency was growing with new programs at both its day habilitation and residential housing sites, SUS launched the Quality Improvement Initiative to maintain and assure high quality services.

Throughout the last five years, the initiative has expanded its scope and has given rise to an invaluable Quality Assurance (QA) department within the SUS support team. Quality Assurance touches aspects of every operation within SUS – staff training, Medicaid reviews, consumer complaints and incident management. The Quality Assurance department also has one individual designated to work with staff to improve the environment at the SUS Program sites.

This Q&A was conducted with Lesmore Willis, Director of Quality Assurance, Training and Development

Q: What is involved in a routine audit by public funding sources?

Public funding sources have minimum standards that the programs are audited by. Usually these audits concentrate only on the deficits and rarely note positives or best practices.

Q: How do internal audits differ from those conducted by public funding sources?

The internal audits are more detailed and may entail more than one day at a particular site. Internal audits often have focus areas of review based on past noted deficiencies. The internal audit also looks at the internal controls and is able to point these out to highlight best practices to be employed agency-wide.

Q: SUS is often described as a “go to agency” by our public funders. How does Quality Assurance contribute to this high praise?

SUS is known for its high standards. There is a lot of good staff at the programs. We would like to believe that QA has heightened staff awareness of areas in the program for which improvements are needed. QA has strengthened the incident management process, aiding staff by recommending additional safeguards.

Q: Was there ever a problematic audit experience? If so, what was learned or achieved as a result?

There was a past fiscal audit that did not go as well as hoped. Subsequently it was recognized that QA could have played a greater role in heightening management awareness more. Since then QA has been more proactive in alerting all SUS departments to situations which may pose liabilities to the organization.

Q: What do public funding auditors learn that you would want all our private funders to know about SUS?

That SUS maintains a standard of transparency and ethical values that are unparalleled.

Q: What are the most common reactions by SUS staff members and consumers to “surprise” audits?

SUS staff have become accustomed to the QA unannounced audit, as it is a common practice within the QA operational procedure. Staff, as well as consumers, welcomes surprise audits as integral to the SUS support system. Consumers very often use this process as a venue for expressing concerns. The QA audit team employs a user friendly approach and strives to make each audit a learning experience for program staff.

Q: What are the goals of the SUS Quality Assurance department in the coming year, and in the years ahead?

The overall objective is to strengthen internal controls within the entire SUS organization. This goal includes building the capacity and capability of individual SUS programs to self monitor and increasing the awareness of high risk areas. The desired result in all QA efforts is a reduction in the agency’s liability, and the health and safety of every SUS consumer.