The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #50653

Darrell P. Wheeler, PhD, MPH¹, Linney C Smith, MPA², and Keith Cylar, MSW². (1) School of Social Work, Hunter College of the City University of New York, 129 E. 79th Street, Room 505, New York, NY 10021, 212-452-7491, dwheeler@hunter.cuny.edu, (2) Housing Works, Inc., 594 Broadway - Suite 700, New York, NY 10012

In this session we describe and discuss innovative techniques to implement and improve outcomes based evaluation in an HIV/AIDS prevention outreach program. The techniques described in this presentation were developed as part of a SAMHSA/CSAT funded HIV/AIDS prevention initiative. Our outreach program, NCRO, provides prevention services to homeless, substance using and other ?at-risk? populations. The goals of the intervention are to increase access to and enrollment in treatment for substance use and to reduce the risk and harm of HIV by linking clients to services. As part of a national trend towards greater programmatic accountability, our HIV prevention outreach program was tasked with delivering services to a highly mobile population and to evaluate the effectiveness of its efforts using a standardized outcomes measure. Developing methods to support and increase staff?s capacity to collect the necessary data became an integral part of the program. Application of empowerment evaluation techniques were used to facilitate weekly staff development sessions. These sessions enabled staff and the evaluation consultant to come to mutually agreed upon protocols for gathering, compiling and analyzing the data. Through this process staff became partners in the evaluation process and not just subjects of the process. The tools, techniques and narrative results of the process will be described and discussed in this session. Implications for community health planning and policy will be highlighted.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe one model to increase peer-educator?s knowledge and use of outcomes based evaluation in HIV/AIDS service delivery.
• Identify three methodological tools for supporting peer-educator?s capacity to implement outcomes evaluations and needs assessments in HIV/AIDS service delivery.
• Discuss the benefits of using empowerment evaluative techniques in developing and supporting HIV/AIDS outreach services to homeless and substance using populations.

Keywords: Evaluation, HIV Interventions

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Housing Works, Inc., community based provider of services to homeless HIV/AIDS impacted persons.
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Evaluation consultant