Using Internet-based resources to build community capacity: the Community Tool Box [http://ctb.ukans.edu/].
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Community Health Planning↗
Biomedical subjects
V T Francisco
Publications and source records attributed to V T Francisco.
Evaluating community initiatives for health and development.
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Adolescent↗
Evaluating a statewide partnership for reducing risks for chronic diseases.
We describe a case study evaluation of Kansas LEAN, a statewide partnership with the mission of reducing risks for chronic diseases through dietary and exercise modification. We used a case study design to examine five primary questions related to process and outcome: (a) were the goals of the partnership important to constituents? (process), (b) were constituents satisfied with the partnership (process), (c) were community or systems changes (new or modified programs, policies, or practices) facilitated by partnership efforts (outcome)?, (d) were these changes important to the partnership's mission (outcome)?, and (e) what critical events helped facilitate community changes (outcome)? several measurement instruments--a monitoring and feedback system, constituent surveys, and semistructured interviews--were used to address key evaluation questions. Kansas LEAN is a strong statewide partnership with involvement from key representatives throughout Kansas. It is an ongoing, comprehensive health promotion program that plans and implements multiple components, in a variety of settings, to create awareness, behavior change, and a supportive environment. Kansas LEAN has facilitated several important community or systems changes related to its mission. We conclude with a discussion of the challenges of evaluating partnerships that seek to reduce risks for chronic diseases.
Acute Disease↗
Evaluating community coalitions for prevention of substance abuse: the case of Project Freedom.
In the United States alone, there are more than 2,000 community coalitions to address local concerns about abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. This article describes an evaluation system used to examine the process, outcome, and impact of coalitions for the prevention of substance abuse. The evaluation addresses five key questions: (a) Was the community mobilized to address substance abuse (Process)? (b) What changes in the community resulted from the coalition (Outcome)? (c) Is there a change in reported use of alcohol and other substances by youths (Outcome)? (d) Does the coalition have a community-level impact on substance abuse (Impact)? and (e) Is community-level impact related to changes facilitated by the coalition (Impact)? To address these and other questions, using eight core measurement instruments, the evaluation system collects 15 distinct measures. This evaluation system is illustrated with a multiyear study of Project Freedom, a substance abuse coalition in a large midwestern city.
Adolescent↗
Evaluating the effects of a community coalition's efforts to reduce illegal sales of alcohol and tobacco products to minors.
Minors' access to alcohol and tobacco is a major public health concern because of the many deaths and disabilities associated with use and the ease with which minors purchase these products. We evaluated the effects of a community-based substance abuse coalition's efforts to reduce alcohol and tobacco products to minors. The intervention--implemented entirely by coalition members--consisted of adults and minors issuing citations to clerks in supermarkets, convenience stores and liquor stores, who were willing to sell alcohol and tobacco products to minors and issuing commendations to clerks who refused to sell. For those liquor stores receiving the citizen's surveillance, there was a marked decrease in alcohol sales to minors, from 83% to 33%; and in those liquor stores not experiencing the intervention, there was a smaller decrease in alcohol sales, from 45% to 36%. This study's findings suggest that citizen surveillance and feedback may be effective in reducing alcohol sales to minors when the intervention is fully implemented, but may be ineffective, at least in these doses, with tobacco sales.
Adolescent↗
Health marketing in the supermarket: using prompting, product sampling, and price reduction to increase customer purchases of lower-fat items.
Reducing purchase and consumption of higher-fat foods is an important health objective for the nation since these behaviors are associated with cardiovascular disease and some cancers. Public health agents attempt to promote health-related behaviors, such as purchases of lower-fat foods, by changing key features of relevant environments. This study examined the effects of a marketing intervention in a supermarket on customer purchases of lower-fat products. Customers of one store of a major supermarket chain participated in this study. Direct observations of customer purchases of lower-fat milk, salad dressings, and frozen desserts were conducted. The supermarket intervention consisted of prompting, product sampling, and price reduction (store coupons). Using an interrupted time series design with switching replications, we found low to moderate increases for the lower-fat counterparts of milk, frozen desserts, and salad dressing. The greatest increase in purchases was found with frozen desserts. Findings from this study suggest that prompting, product sampling, and price reduction can increase customer purchases of some lower-fat products. Implications of these findings for the development and evaluation of health marketing interventions are discussed.
Advertising↗
Using empowerment theory in collaborative partnerships for community health and development.
Models of community empowerment help us understand the process of gaining influence over conditions that matter to people who share neighborhoods, workplaces, experiences, or concerns. Such frameworks can help improve collaborative partnerships for community health and development. First, we outline an interactive model of community empowerment that describes reciprocal influences between personal or group factors and environmental factors in an empowerment process. Second, we describe an iterative framework for the process of empowerment in community partnerships that includes collaborative planning, community action, community change, capacity building, and outcomes, and adaptation, renewal, and institutionalization. Third, we outline activities that are used by community leadership and support organizations to facilitate the process of community empowerment. Fourth, we present case stories of collaborative partnerships for prevention of substance abuse among adolescents to illustrate selected enabling activities. We conclude with a discussion of the challenges and opportunities of facilitating empowerment with collaborative partnerships for community health and development.
Adolescent↗
An experimental evaluation of an incentive program to reduce serum cholesterol levels among health fair participants.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of a health fair and incentive program on the reduction of serum cholesterol levels among participants. DESIGN: Pretest-posttest control group design, with a 6-month delay between pretest and posttest screenings. SETTING: Health fair program for employees of a large midwestern school district. PARTICIPANTS: Volunteer sample among persons with serum cholesterol levels above 5.17 mmol/L (200 mg/dL). Participants were randomly assigned to experimental (N = 29) and comparison groups (N = 34). INTERVENTION: The intervention consisted of four components: a health fair, health risk information, announcement of follow-up screening, and an incentive program. The incentive program consisted of five $100 cash prizes for reducing serum cholesterol levels by 20% or below 5.17 mmol/L (200 mg/dL). The comparison group received only the first three components. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Serum cholesterol levels were measured by a venipuncture, nonfasting, chemical analysis process. RESULTS: The experimental group showed a 13.2% reduction in serum cholesterol levels, and the comparison group exhibited an 11.3% reduction (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: A health fair, consisting of information on the level of risk and how to reduce risk, and announcement of follow-up screening and incentives can reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease.
Adult↗
A methodology for monitoring and evaluating community health coalitions.
Community coalitions are prominent mechanisms for building local capacities to address health and social concerns. Although there are case studies and descriptive reports on coalitions, there is little empirical information about coalition process and outcome. This paper describes a case study using a methodology for monitoring and evaluating community health coalitions. Data are fed back to coalition leaders and members, funding agents, and other relevant audiences as part of the development process. The monitoring system provides data on eight key measures of coalition process and outcome: the number of members, planning products, financial resources generated, dollars obtained, volunteers recruited, services provided, community actions and community changes. Illustrative data are presented for two different community health coalitions. Finally, challenges and opportunities in evaluating community coalitions are discussed.
Community Health Services↗
A model memorandum of collaboration: a proposal.
The authors propose a model memorandum of collaboration for use by state and community partnerships, support organizations, and grantmakers in working together to build healthier communities. Described as an idealized social contract, the model memorandum lays out interrelated responsibilities for the key parties.
Community Health Planning↗
The Community Tool Box: a Web-based resource for building healthier communities.
Building healthier cities and communities requires an array of community-building skills that are not always taught in formal education. The Community Tool Box (http://ctb.ukans.edu) is an Internet-based resource for practical, comprehensive, accessible, and user-friendly information on community-building, which both professionals and ordinary citizens can use in everyday practice. It connects people, ideas, and resources, offering more than 200 how-to sections and more than 5,000 pages of text.
Community Health Planning↗
Improving employee health and wellness: a pilot study of the employee-driven Perfect Health Program.
These preliminary findings suggest that participation in the account may have modified participant behaviors associated with risk for death from heart attack and lung cancer. Although further research and development is needed before stronger conclusions about the impact of the program can be made, these findings suggest positive effects of participation in an innovative employee-driven health and wellness program.
Breast Neoplasms↗