Evaluating the Delivery of a Teen Pregnancy and Parenting Program Across Two Settings

Abstract

This article describes the challenges of evaluating an ongoing social work intervention after a change in delivery setting and offers several approaches to acquiring a fuller understanding of the program differences. The Teenage Pregnancy and Parenting (TAPP) program is a case management intervention operated by Families First in DeKalb County, Georgia, that is designed to help teen mothers (a) complete a high school diploma, (b) have a healthy pregnancy and develop parenting skills, and (c) avoid additional pregnancies. This article presents intake, service, and outcome data on program participants across two delivery settings—from the program's initial public health clinic-based setting to its current public school-based setting. Overall, the work demonstrates the strengths of the school-based version of TAPP and the difficulties of assessing the true effects of an ongoing program in the agency context.

Caregiver Behavior Change for Child Survival and Development in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: An Examination of the Evidence

“…We have reviewed a large body of research showing that there are effective behavior change interventions targeting caregivers that can enhance child survival and early development. Looking primarily at the extensive literature on healthy timing and spacing of pregnancy, we see that effective interventions are focused on implementing multidisciplinary, goal-oriented programs that included the following components: (a) multiple caregiver contacts in homes, health care settings, schools, or community meeting places during the antenatal and early childhood periods (Fischer, 1997 ; Key, Gebregziabher, Marsh, & O'Rourke, 2008 ; Seitz & Apfel, 1993 ); (b) multidisciplinary caregiver teams, including case management by social workers, with trained nurses, trained paraprofessionals, and volunteers (Sant'Anna, Carvalho, Melhado, Coates, & Omar, 2007 ; Schaffer, Jost, Pederson, & Lair, 2008 ); (c) home visits by caregivers, often over a 2-year postpartum period (Kitzman et al, 1997 ; Olds et al, 2004 ); (d) motivating caregiver behavior, sometimes referred to as mentoring (Black et al, 2006 ; Gray, Sheeder, O'Brien, & Stevens-Simon, 2006 ); (e) use of standardized curricula and protocols (Barnet, 2008); (f) goal-orientation interventions (e.g., skill-development and education [O'Sullivan & Jacobsen, 1992 ; Seitz & Apfel, 1993 ]); (g) employment/career planning (Key, Barbosa, & Owens, 2001 ); (h) health, and/or fertility education (Biermann et al, 2006 ); and (i) achievable parenting goals.…”

Development and Evaluation of the Korean Health Literacy Instrument

“…Looking primarily at the extensive literature on healthy timing and spacing of pregnancy, we see that effective interventions are focused on implementing multidisciplinary, goal-oriented programs that included the following components: (a) multiple caregiver contacts in homes, health care settings, schools, or community meeting places during the antenatal and early childhood periods (Fischer, 1997; Key, Gebregziabher, Marsh, & O'Rourke, 2008; Seitz & Apfel, 1993); (b) multidisciplinary caregiver teams, including case management by social workers, with trained nurses, trained paraprofessionals, and volunteers (Sant'Anna, Carvalho, Melhado, Coates, & Omar, 2007; Schaffer, Jost, Pederson, & Lair, 2008); (c) home visits by caregivers, often over a 2-year postpartum period (Kitzman et al, 1997; Olds et al, 2004); (d) motivating caregiver behavior, sometimes referred to as mentoring (Black et al, 2006; Gray, Sheeder, O'Brien, & Stevens-Simon, 2006); (e) use of standardized curricula and protocols (Barnet, 2008); (f) goal-orientation interventions (e.g., skill-development and education [O'Sullivan & Jacobsen, 1992; Seitz & Apfel, 1993]); (g) employment/career planning (Key, Barbosa, & Owens, 2001); (h) health, and/or fertility education (Biermann et al, 2006); and (i) achievable parenting goals.…”

The Sea Change in Nonprofit Human Services: A Critical Assessment of Outcomes Measurement

“…The model specifies four principal outcome areas for the program: (1) healthy pregnancy and birth, (2) avoidance of subsequent pregnancy, (3) academic achievement, and (4) parenting preparation. These basic outcome categories were each fleshed out with more detail for the routine data collection and summary reports have been released (Fischer, 1997a;Fischer, 1997b). A primary message to be taken from this application is that while the outcomes measurement process may seem daunting at first, if the work is compartmentalized and simplified, an agency can make marked progress toward its goal.…”