Evaluating impact of the New Local Health Official Orientation Program: A multiple stakeholder evaluation process

Recent research indicates that approximately one third of Local Health Officials (LHO) have been employed in their position at Local Health Departments (LHD) two years or less. In addition, the "aging" of the public health workforce over the next several years will evidence unprecedented openings in public health leadership positions. These findings highlight the need for action-oriented programs specifically tailored to train new LHOs. In response, the New Local Health Official Orientation (NLHOO) program was created to prepare new LHOs with the necessary knowledge and skills to succeed within the multi-faceted environment of local health practice (i.e., to ensure new LHOs are capable of successfully applying the knowledge and skills needed to build, maintain, and enhance public health capacity and infrastructure). Correspondingly, a rigorous process was developed to objectively evaluate NLHOO program effectiveness, including the complex outcomes associated with leadership and executive development programs. To reflect the complexity of the public health system that involves multiple stakeholders and partners, a collaborative approach was used. More specifically, NLHOO program stakeholders were engaged during each major phase of the evaluation development process to account for their differing perspectives and needs. This presentation will discuss benefits and considerations in using multiple stakeholders to develop an evaluation that is standardized yet responsive to the various needs of the public health community and LHDs. Further, implications of this standardized, integrated evaluation process will be discussed with respect to evaluating the impact of leadership and executive development programs across organizations and communities nationwide.