Health Program Planning and Evaluation Lecture Notes PDF

Health Program Planning and Evaluation Dr. Abdelsalam Mohamed Daoud Department of Epidemiology Faculty of Public Health Jazan University 1 Key Terms  Inputs: are the various resources needed to run the program, e.g., money, facilities, clients, program staff, etc.  The process: is how the pro...

Health Program Planning and Evaluation Dr. Abdelsalam Mohamed Daoud Department of Epidemiology Faculty of Public Health Jazan University 1 Key Terms  Inputs: are the various resources needed to run the program, e.g., money, facilities, clients, program staff, etc.  The process: is how the program is carried out. What do you do?  Outputs: are units of service, e.g. number of patients seen, students who graduate, people fed, etc  Outcomes are the impacts on the people targeted by the program, e.g., increased mental health, increased wellbeing etc. What is the definition of Evaluation?  Evaluation uses research methods, it measures the effectiveness of a program against a set of standards for the purpose of decision making.  It is the final step of planning cycle. Evaluation measures the degree to which objectives and targets are fulfilled and the quality of the results obtained.  In summary, evaluation is assessing the quality and effect of programs. (continued)…  Evaluations should be systematic and used to inform: 1) Whether a program is effective in meeting its stated goals and outcomes; and 2) Future programming decisions.  Although evaluations are about making judgments but they are also meant to be iterative(repeated).  No program is meant to be "perfect" meaning that we always need to be evaluating our programs and findings ways to respond to client, employee, patient, etc. feedback. What is the History of Evaluation?  Began in field of education.  Strengthened during the 1960’s emphasis on social programs and determining their effect on society  Further strengthened during the 1990’s emphasis on outcomes measurement and quality improvement What are the Generations of Evaluation?  1900’s: Technical, testing.  to1960: Descriptive, based on program objectives.  1960’s: Judgement, merit and value as focus.  1980’ and beyond: Negotiation, responsive, pluralistic. What are the Goals of evaluation?  To understand what’s going on.  To empower communities to take care of their own problems. Why do we evaluate? we evaluate ◼ To understand how initiatives develop and succeed. ◼ To improve programs. ◼ To give community members a “voice”. ◼ To hold groups accountable. why Evaluation is neglected? Reasons for which Evaluation is neglected are:  Organizational members misunderstand evaluation's purpose and role.  Organizational members fear the impact of the evaluation findings.  There is a real or perceived lack of evaluation skills.  Evaluation is considered an add-on activity.  Organizational members view evaluation as time consuming and laborious.  Perceived costs outweigh the perceived benefits.  Leaders think they already know what works.  No one asked for it. Deciding to Evaluate Depends on: Presence of Contraindications (‫)موانع‬ or obstacles. Context of evaluation. Contraindications to Evaluating  The program is very popular.  The program is meaningless but has public support.  Changes in the program would be expensive or dangerous.  Too costly to do the evaluation.  The program has no clear orientation. Contraindications (continued)  There are no questions about the program.  People can not agree on program objectives.  Impossible to evaluate because of technical problems.  Program sponsor or staff uncooperative or resistant. Context of Evaluations  Environments  Social norms and values  Attitudes toward evaluations and evaluators  Policies and Politics  Program Quality