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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Bassam Abed El Jawad Abu Hamad, PhD, Public Health Team, Hanan Project-West Bank and Gaza Strip, El Rimal Area, P.O Box 1358, Gaza, Palestine, +972 8 2835140, bhamad@hanan-mchn.org

The Hanan Project's goal is to ensure that 60% of the most vulnerable women and children, living in the West Bank and Gaza (WB/G) have access to an essential package of quality maternal and child health and nutrition services and information. This goal required Hanan to develop a methodology for identifying its target population. However, as many entities have discovered, identifying such populations through an evidence-based approach is often quite challenging in practice, especially since this process had never been carried out in the West Bank and Gaza (WB/G).

The result was the development of a multi-step and multi-dimensional methodology consisting of: 1) an extensive analysis of existing data (health, socio-economic and access indicators) used to create a quantitative rank ordering of community vulnerability; 2) a qualitative assessment of communities using input from community members and leaders; 3) the mapping of quantitative and qualitative data using GIS technology to identify geographic “clusters” of vulnerability; 4) community site visits to validate findings; and 5) consultations with partners, national stakeholders and USAID on the final selection of sites.

Using this methodology, Hanan reviewed 608 communities in WB/G, ultimately identifying 177 communities as “most vulnerable.” This comprehensive and evidence-based approach has proven to be effective in minimizing, if not eliminating subjectivity in the selection of target populations. This presentation will describe the methodology's development, share lessons learned and suggest potential uses of the methodology in assisting other organizations in completing a more accurate, efficient and equitable assessment of vulnerability for their own programs.

Learning Objectives: