Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Chicago Tribune
by Erica Slife

Cook County will start using benchmarks such as wait times at hospitals and employee sick time as part of a plan to set performance standards.

Quarterly reports will be released to show whether goals are met, officials said today.

“This is the first opportunity for all of the separate agencies of Cook County to stand together and report system-wide data in public safety, health care, property and taxation, general finance and administration,” said County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said at a news conference. “Reporting system-wide data allows us to have frank conversations about the cost and the quality of the services that we deliver.”

The report will include information showing how services are delivered, what resources are used and whether standards are met.

Several other countywide elected officials attended the news conference, including State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez, Assessor Joe Berrios, Recorder of Deeds Eugene Moore and Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown. The first report is scheduled to be released the first week of July. The information will be published online.