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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Suzan D. Boyd, DrPH and Mary Prince, PHD. South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, 1331 Elmwood Avenue, Suite 140, Columbia, SC 29201, 803-771-7700, sboyd@teenpregnancysc.org

In 2002, the South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy was awarded CDC funding to implement an education and technical assistance program to promote the application of science-based approaches SBA)among local providers of teen pregnancy prevention interventions. The program, guided by assessment data and Diffusion of Innovation Theory, was designed to target four primary competencies indicating science-based practice: identifying and selecting priority populations, designing a theory of behavior change using a BDI (behavior determinant intervention) logic model, selecting (or designing) an appropriate evidence based curriculum to implement with fidelity, and conducting process and outcome evlaluations to improve interventions and build community support.

A quasi-experimental outcome evaluation using mixed methods was conducted at the end of three years to determine the effectiveness of the Campaign's education and TA program. The independent variable was "dosage", the number of Campaign-sponsored trainings any single provider attended. There was significantly (p<.05) higher levels of confidence in using and application of the four competencies among providers attending more than seven trainings over the past three years than providers attending seven or fewer trainings. Additional evidence supporting the association between participation in the Campaign's program and the adoptin of SBA emerged from collected qualitative data as well. Based on these outcomes, the education and TA model developed by the Campaign appears promising.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify key components of an effective state-wide education and TA program to promote the use of science-based approaches (SBA)
• Describe how a program logic model guides program implementation and evaluation
• Use evaluation results to improve on-going programs
• Use evaluation to build support for a new or existing program
• Understand the dosage response in changing provider behavior through educational programming

Keywords: Primary Prevention,

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No