Process Evaluation in Action: Lessons Learned from Alabama REACH 2010

Authors

M. C. Nagy, Western Kentucky University
Rhoda E. Johnson, University of Alabama
Robin C. Vanderpool, University of Kentucky
Mona N. Fouad, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Mark Dignan, University Kentucky
Theresa A. Wynn, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Edward E. Patridge, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Isabel Scarinci, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Cheryl Holt, University of Alabama at BirminghamFollow
Sharina D. Person, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Keywords

Alabama; African American women; Breast – Cancer; Cancer Disparities; Cervix uteri – Cancer; Community-Based Participatory Research; Process Evaluation; Women; White

Disciplines

Community-Based Learning | Demography, Population, and Ecology | Gender and Sexuality | Medicine and Health | Obstetrics and Gynecology | Oncology | Public Health | Race and Ethnicity

Abstract

The CDC-funded Alabama Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH 2010) project is designed to reduce and eliminate disparities in breast and cervical cancer between African American and white women in six rural and three urban counties in Alabama. In this manuscript, we report on the development, implementation, results, and lessons learned from a process evaluation plan initiated during the Phase I planning period of the Alabama REACH 2010 program. The process evaluation plan for Alabama REACH 2010 focused on four main areas of activity that coincided with program objectives: assessing coalition development, building community capacity, conducting a needs assessment, and developing a community action plan. Process evaluation findings indicated that progress made by Alabama REACH 2010 was due, in part, to evaluative feedback. We conclude that process evaluation can be a powerful tool for monitoring and measuring the administrative aspect of a complex, community-based health intervention.

Recommended Citation

Nagy, M. C.; Johnson, Rhoda E.; Vanderpool, Robin C.; Fouad, Mona N.; Dignan, Mark; Wynn, Theresa A.; Patridge, Edward E.; Scarinci, Isabel; Holt, Cheryl; and Person, Sharina D. (2008) "Process Evaluation in Action: Lessons Learned from Alabama REACH 2010," Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice: Vol. 2: Iss. 1, Article 6.
Available at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/jhdrp/vol2/iss1/6