An Evaluation Model to Promote Linkages Between Community-based Public Health Practice and Academia

We present a participatory/collaborative approach to the evaluation of programs in community-based settings known as the Integrated Model of Community-Based Evaluation (IMCBE). The underlying principles of the IMCBE are that services be evaluated at the level of administration, that the orientation of the service delivery guides the evaluation, and that participants and (when possible) providers are full partners in the evaluation process. These principles promote rigorous accountability and full participation, allowing for the reduction of barriers that traditionally have existed between the public health practice community and academia. A case-based example of the Alabama Perinatal Program's Community-Based Initiative Projects (CIP) will demonstrate: a) the usefulness of the IMCBE in enhancing the collaborative efforts between the CIPs and the evaluation team from the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health; and b) a sound evaluation design that utilizes quantitative and qualitative methods. The case example will illustrate how the community-based projects' approach to reduction of barriers to care and health disparities among high-risk pregnant women and the principles inherent in the IMCBE were integrated to facilitate the evaluation process. The presentation will provide more specific results of the collaboration and conclude with lessons learned and strategies that can be applied to similar efforts.