Introduction
As public health professionals, our goal is to have a lasting impact on the health of individuals and their communities. Research is conducted, programs are devised, initiatives implemented all with the hope of improving health and wellness for current and future generations.
Yet, how do we know if programs are meeting their objectives? Not only this, but how do we explore the following:
- Why it is (or isn't) meeting these objectives?
- The major strengths of the program
- How it may be improved?
- What learnings could be applied to future planning and programs?
All these questions, and more, are explored through the program evaluation process.
Traversing this complex evaluation landscape is an exciting, challenging and critical piece of the public health puzzle. It is a topic that spans public health disciplines and will only become more critical within our increasingly cost-sensitive environment.
The goal of this module is to provide a strong foundation to support classroom learning, practicum experiences and real-world evaluation initiatives for BUSPH students, alumni and the broader community. Now let's get started!
Learning Objectives
After completing this module, you will be able to:
- Define the various types of program evaluation, when they should be deployed and their main goals
- Utilize and apply the CDC framework to understand the key steps and processes in program evaluation
- Identify key stakeholders within a program and assess their role and interests in the program evaluation
- Define and organize the objectives of a program and translate them to evaluation research questions
- Assess the strengths and weaknesses of various evaluation designs given your evaluation questions, context and resources
- Identify key quantitative and qualitative methods for carrying out your evaluation, including data types and data collection approaches
- Translate and disseminate evaluation findings to key stakeholders, and how evaluation findings may be applied in a real-world setting
