Measuring Service Effectiveness for Families

While most professionals do not dispute the fact that evaluation is necessary to determine whether agencies and practitioners are truly providing services that meet clients’ needs, information regarding consistent measures on service effectiveness in human service organizations is sparse. A national survey of 250 not-for-profit family service organizations in the United States (52.8% return rate) yielded results relevant to client identified needs and agency effectiveness measures in serving today’s families. On an open-ended survey item, 52.3% agencies indicated that poverty represented the most pressing problem among today’s families because other psychological needs also take priority. Over two thirds of these agencies used multiple methods to evaluate their services. Clients’ feedback and outcome measures are the most popular methods. The findings reveal agencies' difficulties in determining what or who decides if the most appropriate services are being provided for the target population. Limited data collected on outcomes and impact may impose additional difficulties in program design and planning.

Adherence to HIV /AIDS therapies among low -literacy populations: The ALP project

Adherence to HIV/AIDS therapies has been an important health problem since the early 1980s when AZT was first prescribed as a therapy for HIV/AIDS. It became particularly important between 1995 and 1997 with the advent of protease inhibitors (Chesney, Ickovics, Hecht, Sikipa, & Rabkin J., 1999) and became even more significant as persons with HIV/AIDS began to develop resistance to medications. Low-literacy populations have poorer health (Brez & Taylor, 1997) and higher AIDS rates (Simon, Hu, Diaz, & Kerndt, 1995), than their higher literacy counterparts due to delayed treatment (Baker, Parker, Williams, Clark, & Nurss, 1997), shame of literacy skills (Parikh, 1996), and poor access to care (Williams, et al., 1995). Poorer health and higher AIDS rates can also be attributed to poor patient-provider relationships (Crespo-Fierro, 1997; Eldred, Wu, Chaisson, & Moore, 1998) to a poorer understanding of medical protocols (Murphy, 1997), and inadequate patient education (Ungvarski, 1997; Davis, Michielutte, Askov, Williams, & Weiss, 1998, Doak, Doak, & Root, 1996). ^ The ALP intervention was developed for HIV positive low-literacy populations of African American women in Houston, Texas. The intervention was based on a needs assessment, using the PRECEDE model, an innovative process referred to as Intervention Mapping, and validated using formative evaluation methods with 54 individuals. The needs assessment resulted in a list of behavioral, environmental, predisposing, enabling, and reinforcing determinants of adherence. The Intervention Mapping framework was used to refine these determinants and develop a list of objectives describing what must be learned or changed to for the target population to adhere to HIV/AIDS therapies. Methods and strategies, were developed using theoretical constructs from the Health Belief Model (Rosenstock, 1974) and Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986). These theories, empirical evidence, and information from the target population indicated that perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, outcome expectations, and self-efficacy were important and changeable determinants of adherence to HIV/AIDS therapies for this population. ^ These components were brought together in the form of a theory-based color cartoon book and 10-minute cassette tape. The book was developed for people with 2.9 years of U.S. education as measured with the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level method and the script was recorded onto a cassette tape to make it suitable for populations with even lower-literacy skills. A formative evaluation was conducted to ensure that the content and structure were accurate, clear, realistic, readable, appropriate, and likely to be used as intended. ^

Case Study of Applied LIP Approach/Activities in the Philippines The Training Services Enhancement Project for Rural Life Improvement (TSEP-RLI) Experience

TSEP-RLI was a technical cooperation project jointly conducted by GOP thru DA-Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) and GOJ thru JICA aimed at institutionalizing the training program for Rural Life Improvement (RLI) at the (ATI). As expected, farmers, fisherfolk, women, youth and extension agents were provided with efficient and effective training services from ATI leading to the improvement of quality of life in the rural areas through efforts of human resource development. The ATI- Bohol was chosen as the model center where participatory trials and various activities of the project were undertaken for five years. These activities were participatory surveys and data collection of on-farm and off-farm productive activities; planning workshop for RLI; feedbacking of survey results and action plans to the community and the Local Government Units (LGUs), and signing of Memorandum of Agreement between the Project and participating LGUs. The above activities were done to facilitate the planning and development of most effective and necessary rural life improvement activities, to confirm the willingness of the people to support and participate and to formalize the partnership between the Project and the LGUs. Since the concept of rural life covers a vast range of activities, a consensus had been reached that the total aspects of rural life be grasped in three spheres, namely, Production & Livelihood (P/L), Rural Living Condition (RLC) and Community Environment (C/E). The RLI for Ubi (Yam) Growers was one of the pilot activities undertaken in two pilot barangays and the target beneficiaries were members of the Rural Improvement Club (RIC- a group of organized women) with the LGU of the Municipality of Corella as the implementing partner. During the planning workshop, the barangay residents articulated their desire to promote production and processing of ubi (sphere on P/L - as the entry point), lack of nutritious food was one of the identified problem (sphere on RLC- expansion point) and environmental degradation such as deforestation, and soil erosion was another problem articulated by the community people (sphere on C/E- expansion point). Major activities that were undertaken namely, Ubi cooking contest, cooking/processing seminar, training courses on entrepreneurial development, ubi production and storage technology, packaging and product design, human resource development and simplified bookkeeping motivated the beneficiaries as well as developed and enhanced their skills & capabilities while strengthening their associations. Their participation to the 5 ubi festivals and other related activities had brought some impacts on their economic and rural life improvement activities. The seven principles of TSEP-RLI include the participatory process, holistic approach, dialogical approach, bottom -up training needs assessment, demand-driven approach, cost sharing approach and collaborative implementation with other agencies including LGUs and the community.

A Guide to multicultural drug abuse prevention.

Description based on 2.

Alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use by women in the Illinois child welfare system : prevalence - treatment need - impact on children.

"This report represents a joint effort between the Illinois Department of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse (DASA) and Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). The study examined alcohol, tobaccco, and other drug abuse (ATODA) and need for treatment among adults involved with the child welfare system in Illinois. The purpose of the study was to provide data on the relationships between ATODA and child abuse and neglect"--P. iii.

Determination of need, service cost maximum study /

This report was prepared by the Illinois Dept. on Aging and has been submitted to the Illinois General Assembly as required under Public Act 95-565.

Illinois indicators of alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse : comparisons, consequences, risk factors : executive summary.

Funding for this study was provided by a contract to the Illinois Dept. of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse from the U.S. Center for Substance Abuse Treatment as part of the State Systems Development Program (CSAT contract 270-92-0018).

Illinois household survey on alcohol, tobacco, and other drug abuse, 1994 : prevalence, need for treatment.

"The Illinois Household Survey is designed to assess the level of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) use by Illinois adults and the need for alcohol and drug treatment ... The questionnaire was developed by the Harvard University National Technical Assistance Center for Substance Abuse Needs Assessment (NTC) as modified for use in Illinois. Funding for the study and the work of NTC was provided by the U.S. Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) as part of their State Systems Development Program"--P. iii.

Illinois HIV statewide coordinated statement of need /

"December 2005."

Plan to restructure the state of Illinois service delivery system for older adults /

Such restructuring shall encompass the provision of housing, health, financial and supportive older adult services. It is envisioned that this restructuring will promote the development, availability, and accessibility of a comprehensive, affordable, and sustainable service delivery system that places a high priority on home-based and community-based services. Such restructuring will encompass all aspects of the delivery system regardless of the setting in which the service is provided." (PA 093-1081 Section 5).

Report : findings of the Illinois Legislative Health Insurance Exchange Study Committee (as required by SB 1555) /

"October 18, 2011."--Memorandum.

Report to the Illinois General Assembly on Public Act 84-569.

Cover title.

Training operations in small departments : student manual /

Designed to provide the student [i.e. the training officer] with the essential tools and skills to lead and manage a training program in a small department.

The mental health country profile: Background, design and use of a systematic method of appraisal

This article describes the construction and use of a systematic structured method of mental health country situation appraisal, in order to help meet the need for conceptual tools to assist planners and policy makers develop and audit policy and implementation strategies. The tool encompasses the key domains of context, needs, resources, provisions and outcomes, and provides a framework for synthesizing key qualitative and quantitative information, flagging up gaps in knowledge, and for reviewing existing policies. It serves as an enabling tool to alert and inform policy makers, professionals and other key stakeholders about important issues which need to be considered in mental health policy development. It provides detailed country specific information in a systematic format, to facilitate global sharing of experiences of mental health reform and strategies between policy makers and other stakeholders. Lastly, it is designed to be a capacity building tool for local stakeholders to enhance situation appraisal, and multisectorial policy development and implementation.

Population mobility and indigenous peoples in Australasia and North America

This book draws together relevant research findings to produce the first comprehensive overview of Indigenous peoples' mobility. Chapters draw from a range of disciplinary sources, and from a diversity of regions and nation-states. Within nations, mobility is the key determinant of local population change, with implications for service delivery, needs assessment, and governance. Mobility also provides a key indicator of social and economic transformation. As such, it informs both social theory and policy debate. For much of the twentieth century conventional wisdom anticipated the steady convergence of socio-demographic trends, seeing this as an inevitable concomitant of the development process. However, the patterns and trends in population movement observed in this book suggest otherwise, and provide a forceful manifestation of changing race relations in these new world settings. © 2009 Informa plc