The Level of Risky Drinking among Youth Aged 18-24 - Assignment Example

Running Head: Health Promotion Health Promotion Name Course Lecturer Date Exercise 1 a) Effective and efficient mass media campaigns are a chief part of reducing the level of risky drinking among local youth aged 18-24. However, there is a need to evaluate the media campaign before implementing it. Evaluation does measure the growth made in achieving the set goals of the campaign. There are four basic purposes for evaluation; assessment of worth and merit. Under this, media buying performance is assessed against targets; organizational and program development. Earl (2010) asserts that as evaluation measures the achievement of the media campaign, it will assist the team in fulfilling the set objectives (Howley, 2005). Ultimately, the program of the organization will be developed. For instance, as the campaign has specific hypothesis about the steps through which exposure to the campaign message would influence beliefs and attitudes and eventually influence the behavior. In evaluating the media campaign, the team will be able to meet the existing rules of the organization. It is obvious that evaluation of this campaign will lead to knowledge development (Nutbeam & Bauman, 2006). The team will be conducting formative evaluation in this promotion. Formative evaluation seeks to improve or strength a program. This type of evaluation takes place before a project implements its activities in order to improve the project’s performance and design. It is effective in behavior change and community engagement as these interventions are complex and require careful monitoring of the process in order to respond to unexpected outcomes and emergent properties. Still, it will assist in observing and capturing feedback that will improve the promotion (Wise & Hearn, 2004). b) An outcome evaluation is appropriate for this media campaign. It will be of essential to obtain a descriptive data of the campaign and document its short-term results as an output (World Bank, 2000). Such outcomes include the number of support enquiries that will result from campaign announcements. The short-term results will measure the immediate effects the campaign will have on the target youth such as increased awareness of the campaign. Outcome evaluation information may include some of the following qualitative measures: There should be changes in youth knowledge and attitude toward risky drinking habits. As media campaign increase awareness, engage the public or targeted groups; generate high short term and immediate responses, and long term attitude change. One reason of evaluating the media campaign is to derive its uniqueness to achieve the set of objectives. An educative and informative strategy should be aimed at. Evaluation is meant to indicate the core target, confirm the purpose and the actions the audiences are expected to take. The youth should express intentions through short-term and intermediate behavior change (Taub, et al, 2011). This is through their participation, through the created supportive environments. This enhances their personal resilience over addiction and thus ability to pursue resilient relationships. Intermediate and long run behavior is revealed by developed self-esteem, life purpose and self control. This contributes positively and enhances programs sustainability. Lastly, evaluation also determines the policies to be initiated and the institutional changes. Since the campaign advocacy is also directed to policy makers; politicians, private sectors, and government officials will impact positively on peoples’ lives. Influenced decisions will respond to youth interests and help them face the drinking problem (Campaign, 2007). Exercise 2 a) Strategic evaluation is described as a process that determines the effectiveness of a particular strategy that is being applied by an organization to achieve its set objectives. Indeed, a strategic evaluation assists to keep check on the validity of specific strategic choice (HPSG, 2010). Output measure is effective in the given case. It is used to gauge a program process. Basically, it describes a particular program activities rather than the eventual effect of a specific program. In the case study provided, the organization has set a program to increase awareness of health promotion program. Output measures will allow the manager of the organization to plan appropriately for the employees. In addition, the manager may use outputs to tailor the health programs in accordance to the need of the employees (Jirojwong & Liamputtong, 2009). According to Hodges & Videto (2005) impact measure assesses short term outcomes of a program and it is linked to the objectives. It measure both observable and non-observable phenomena. In the case study provided, a non-observable phenomenon is measured. Employees’ opinion and attitude may be used to measure the impact of promoting employees’ awareness of health promotion program in the work place. Their attitude and opinion towards the program will assist the management to measure the impact given the various tools that they have applied to create awareness in the work place. For instance, the employees, attitude may be measured by evaluating the number of employees that attend the monthly information session and those who visit the web page. b) Outcome, impact and process evaluation measures In evaluating the second objective; increase the number of employees who use the physical activities in the work place by the end of one year, process, impact and outcome evaluation measures may be used. Under the impact evaluation, measurement of observable phenomena is done. The evaluation may compare the number of employees using the work place facilities before and after the health promotion program. This may be done without intervention. The impact of the program is done by comparing the number of employees who received the services and those who did not (Lane & Michel, 2008). Using process evaluation which basically assesses the performance of steps taken to achieved outcomes that are desired, the program planners may assess whether the employees have participated in the program. They may measure the number of employees that have been using the facilities and those who have been satisfied with the program. Using the outcome evaluation measure, which essentially consider programs objectives to determine if the desired knowledge or behavior has been attained as a result of intervention, the promotion planners may count the number of employees who have been using the work place physical activities facilities before and after the intervention in order to determine the quantifiable effect of their health program in the work place (Stephens, 2008). Exercise 3 In running a smoking cessation program at three monthly intervals for two years, the organization will use the outcome evaluation. The organization will apply this evaluation method as it will enable them to document behavioral and health outcomes. In addition, the organization will be able to identify linkages between quantifiable and intervention effects. Outcome evaluation does assess the effectiveness of a particular program in producing change. It is obvious that outcome evaluation focus on quite difficult questions that may ask what happens to the program participants and the differences a program made for them. For instance, outcome questions for this report may include; whether the program assisted in assisting people to quit smoking, whether the program was more successful in some groups than others, which aspects that the participants that was most beneficial to the participants (Malekafzali et al, 2010). There are some main issues that should be covered in the report. Outcome evaluation objective is a key in the report. This is because they are the starting point in the investigation and are very fundamental in keeping this report relevant. The set objectives should be clear and concise. Evaluation design is also important in the report. The number of participants invited for the evaluation should be stated. While carrying out the evaluation processes, the ethical considerations were to be done and reviewed according to the Public Health Policy. The data collected should be analyzed. In addition, the data to be obtained should be confirmed as treated as confidential (IAPPA, 2004). The outcome evaluation components should be given, that is, the stage of change. This includes the number of participants both at pre-intervention and post-intervention, which were at the preparation stage. Under this, the report should indicate whether a test was used to determine whether there was any change in the level of confidence, importance and readiness to quit after intervention. Still, a descriptive statistics indicating the scores of each session carried out should be outlined in the report. Different sessions such as quitting strategies, eating healthy, physical activity, breathe better and stress relaxation should be included. The report should include the overall program satisfaction. This includes the feedback from the participants, that is, both positive and negative on the program. In the discussion, the report should discuss the number of participants that were willing to quit, the results of the report should illustrate the progression stages of change, that is, including relapse (Rütten A et al., 2009). The report should also give recommendation to the Public Health and Tobacco Control Team. The recommendations should be as a result or based from the findings of the report. This includes interventions that should be undertaken by the Health Public. Such interventions would include social and education support programs that are effective, improve policies involving tobacco use cessations, health benefits that would support those addicted to tobacco (Talbot & Verrinder, 2010). References Campaign, (2007). Media: Double Standards -’ Make a brilliant program, and they will come ’. Campaign, p.1-2. Earl, R. (2010). The practice of social research. New York: Wiley & Sons, Inc Health Promotion Study Guide (HPSG), (2010). Week 6 Program Planning and Evaluation, UOW: Wollongong pp.5‐6 Hodges, B. & Videto, D. (2005). Assessment and planning in health programs. Sudbury MA :Jones & Bartlett Publishers Hodges, C. & Videto, M (2005). Assessment and planning in health programs. Sudbury: Jones & Bartlett Publishers Howley, K (2005). Community Media: People, Places, and Communication Technologies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. International Association for Public Participation Australasia, (IAPPA) (2004). Public Participation International Spectrum, IAP2. Jirojwong, S. & Liamputtong, S. (2009). Population Health, Communities and Health Promotion. South Melbourne: Oxford University Press Lane, C. & Michel, K. (2008). Community mapping project report. Melbourne: Royal Victorian Eye & Ear Hospital Malekafzali H et al, (2010). The effectiveness of educational intervention in the health promotion in elderly people, Iranian Journal of Public Health, 39 (2) 18‐23 Nutbeam, D & Bauman, A. (2006). Evaluation in a Nutshell. Sydney: McGraw Hill Rütten A et al., (2009). Assets for policy making in health promotion: Overcoming political barriers inhibiting women in difficult life situations to access sport Promotion Journal of Australia,15 (2): 91‐93. Stephens, C. (2008). Health Promotion: A psychosocial approach, New York: Open Talbot, L & Verrinder, G. (2010), Promoting health: A Primary Health Care Approach, 4th ed., Sydney: Churchill Livingstone Taub, D. et al, (2011). Developing Skills in Providing Outreach Programs: Construction and Use of the POSE (Performance of Outreach Skills Evaluation) Rubric.Counseling Outcome Research and Evaluation, 2(1), p.59-72. Wise, M. & Hearn, S. (2004). ‘The future of health promotion in Australia’, Health facilities, Social Science & Medicine 69:1667‐1673. World Bank, (2000). Monitoring and Evaluation Chapter. In Evaluation. The World Bank, pp. 1-8. Available at: http://mande.co.uk/. Read More