Many evaluations of programs tend to show few outcomes. One solution to this has been an increasing prominence of the movement that requires programs to implement evidence-based interventions (EBIs). But in a complex world with complex organizations and complex interventions, many challenges have arisen to the implementation of EBIs with fidelity…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide a review of an Australian health promoting schools (HPS) project to identify key features of the concept of resilience and how it can be used in a school setting to develop and strengthen protective factors in young people, as a mechanism for improving social functioning and reducing involvement in…

In 1997, American Evaluation Association member George Grob, now retired from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and currently President of the Center for Public Program Evaluation, made a testimony on Medicare home health care fraud and abuse before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging. The occasion was to announce the…

Within a system, change affects stakeholders differently. Consequently, when making changes in the mental health system, mental health agencies should expect varied reactions from staff, community members, consumers, and families. Since misunderstandings can stymie efforts to implement evidence-based and promising practices, it is important to…

Ongoing, strategic family-school partnering (FSP) is an essential component of every educational community. FSP is a multi-dimensional process in which schools, families, and communities engage in shared actions to ensure a child's academic, social, and emotional success. With this text, the authors intend to offer a practical guide that…

By consciously applying evaluation techniques before they adopt a new program, health educators can increase the likelihood that the program will meet their needs. Guidelines are provided for posing questions about the new program, that are normally raised at the program's end, as part of summative evaluation. (Authors/PP)

Objective: Organizational learning, underpinned by evidence-based health care, and greater user involvement in planning and delivery were key objectives of the NHS Plan. Evaluation, and specifically participatory evaluation, offers the potential to address these elements of the NHS modernization agenda. We discuss the strengths and limitations of…

This paper presents an overview of the planning, implementation, and evaluation of a mental health continuing education program in rural Virginia. An initial needs assessment found that professionals, paraprofessionals, and volunteers need further training in innovative treatment approaches, community intervention, and prevention strategies. The…

Rethinking and expanding the theory of change underlying systems of care are recommended to support development of the knowledge base for understanding what systems of care can be expected to accomplish. Three domains of knowledge are presented as necessary to understanding the relationship between systems-level change and services. (Contains…

This study, which collected data through interviews and document review, was designed to identify strengths and weaknesses of Minnesota's Comprehensive Children's Mental Health Act (CCMHA) of 1989 and its implementation through December 1990. Three criteria for mental health reform were established for the study, including: care should be…

This report assesses the impact of federal child health policy under Titles V and XIX of the Social Security Act upon the states of Connecticut and Vermont for the years 1935 to 1975, and analyzes the reasons for the discrepancy between policy intent and state execution. Two simultaneous approaches are used for data analysis: a cross sectional…

This book undertakes the task of portraying the application of planning theory to health concerns. It defines the purposes planning is meant to serve; analyzes the dynamics of social change; identifies the major determinants of change; and examines how planning can best affect those determinants. The book is organized into five major sections: (1)…

This monograph reports the results of an effort to assess the experiences of family members and professionals who have received family/professional collaboration training and provides an evaluation of the training program and a discussion of the nature of collaboration. The fundamental concept underlying the training curriculum was the pairing of…

This monograph is based on experiences of the national Child and Adolescent Service System Program (CASSP) and describes a plan for developing and implementing community based systems of care for children and adolescents with serious emotional disorders and their families. It draws on examples from state mental health plans to illustrate planning…