The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #68729

Howard P. Greenwald, PhD, School of Policy, Planning, and Development, University of Southern California, 650 Childs Way, Los Angeles, CA 00089-0626, 213-740-0397, greenwa@usc.edu, William Beery, MPH, The Group Health Community Foundation, 1730 Minor Avenue, Suite 1500, Seattle, WA 98101, and Pamela M. Schwartz, MPH, Center for Community Health and Evaluation, Kaiser Health Policy Institute, One Kaiser Plaza, 22nd Floor, Oakland, CA 94612.

Synthesis of methods and lessons learned from evaluation of several key interventions provides an understanding of the state of the art in CBPH program evaluation today. This synthesis is based on review of large-scale, foundation-funded, multi-site interventions aimed at reducing health risks and promoting community well-being. The synthesis draws primarily on evaluation of the Turning Point Initiative, the Partnership for the Public’s Health, the Community Partnerships for Healthy Children, and the Health Improvement Initiative. Current state-of-the-art methods emphasize the logic model case study design applied to multiple cases. Features include strong community participation in evaluation design and content, provision of formative feedback to key stakeholders, and emphasis on intermediate outcomes. Significant technical challenges include (a) developing internally and externally valid results from case studies, and (b) obtaining evidence for attribution of outcomes to interventions. Important practical challenges include (a) obtaining comparable information from multiple observers, (b) capturing intermediate outcomes during the period available for evaluation, and (c) performing useful studies under limited funding. Political challenges stem from the need to work effectively with multiple stakeholders with varying orientations, objectives and needs. Next steps should emphasize formulation of intermediate outcome measures applicable across communities, creation of a learning community of evaluation researchers, and building a shared vision of evaluation among all stakeholders in community-based public health.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the key features of widely used, advanced techniques of evaluating community-based health promotion interventions, as well as challenges associated with their application.
• Describe the desirable features of community-based program design and specify the steps which must be taken to practically apply them.
• Outline an evaluation plan comprising both technical features and a program for communicating with stakeholders and addressing their diverse interests.

Keywords: Evaluation, Community Health

Related Web page: none

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: nonr
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.