Online Course
NURS 467: Leadership and Management for the Registered Nurse
Module 9: Program Planning and Evaluation
PROGRAM PLANNING
Program Planning Steps
Community/public health nurses are leaders who perform the interventions, manage the program, evaluate and revise the program to meet the outcomes for the community and people who live in the targeted community. As you know, the steps in health program planning are like the nursing process, and include assessment, analysis, planning, implementation, and evaluation. Note that no single classification exists for nursing diagnosis of communities. The nursing diagnoses address the community members’ responses to actual and potential health problems.
A series of specific steps is needed. The steps listed below do not have to be in this same sequence; several steps can be undertaken at the same time. However, it is vital to identify the planning group prior to proceeding to the steps in the program.
- Assessment of the community is the first step
- Diagnosis - after assessment, a definitive problem is identified
- Validation of the assessment and diagnosis
- Prioritization of Needs/Diagnoses .
- Identification of the target population
- Identification of the planning group (this is recommended to be done early in the process). Need various stakeholders from the assessment population, agencies, services, community health groups, churches, non-profit centers and foundations. You would want to include people on your planning committee who would have access to resources you may need and groups of people to help volunteer in the program.
- Establishment of the program goal
- Identification of possible solutions
- Matching solutions with at-risk aggregates - your assessment may identify other sub populations with different needs.
- Identification of resources- will dictate what can be done in the program to a certain extent.
- Selection of the best intervention strategy
- Delineation of expected outcomes
- Delineation of the intervention work plan
- Planning for program evaluation
Community collaboration is essential for sucessful program planning!
Expected Outcomes:
Outcome, process and management objectives facilitate attainment of the program goal. These must be developed BEFORE the program is implemented.
- Outcome Objectives address the heath behavior that is desired in the target population (how did the program improve or change health?).
- Process Objectives identify implementation activities or health care delivery necessary to achieve desired change (how did the program function? What were the strengths and weaknesses? How do we know we are on track as the program is going along?).
- Management Objectives delineate the structures necessary to carry out process objectives (what do we need to initiate and sustain this program?).
Read tips from the CDC on developing process and outcome objectives here. The Community Tool Box also offers valuable information on creating objectives.
Evaluation
Evaluation is the process of determining whether planned goals were achieved, assessing the value of the nursing intervention and identifying any unplanned results. The PHN works with interdisciplinary teams and community members to evaluate responses to nursing interventions. The PHN must address and think through program evaluation during the planning phase - BEFORE the program is implemented.
Purpose of Evaluation:
- Assess and improve program quality (Formative)
- Determine program effectiveness (Summative)
Formative and Summative Evaluations
Formative evaluation occurs throughout the program and evaluates the process, prior to evaluating the outcomes. This ongoing evaluation allows for modifications throughout the process of program implementation. Process and management objectives are used for formative evaluation.
Summative evaluation measures outcomes and goal attainment and occurs after the intervention has been completed. The nurse measures the “sum” or the end results. Outcome objectives are used for summative evaluation.
Standards for evaluation of nursing care with communities:
- The employing agency is to provide supervision, consultation, & evaluation plans
- Community members are to participate in evaluation
- Nursing care is to be revised based on evaluation
- Evaluation is to be documented & disseminated
Evaluation goals:
- Collect, analyze, interpret, and report data
- Demonstrate goals achieved
- Decide whether to continue, expand or end the program
- Improve nursing care/improve care to be acceptable to community
- Process (Formative)/Impact & Outcome (Summative)
Check out a very successful community-based initiative right here in Baltimore aimed at supporting our littlest community members. PHNs play a major role in planning, implementing and evaluating many of the programs included in this city-wide initiative. Click here to read the Five Year Brochure.
