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Session Title: Evaluating a State Comprehensive Cancer Control Program: Planning, Implementation and Initial Results

Panel Session 353 to be held in Washington Room on Thursday, November 8, 11:15 AM to 12:45 PM

Sponsored by the Health Evaluation TIG

Chair(s):

Lisa payday loan  Stephens payday loan ,  National Cancer Institute,  stephens.lisa@mayo.edu

Abstract: The increase in collaboratives to address large scale chronic health issues warrants improved evaluation methods. Effective collaborations have been shown to include key components regarding leadership, capacity building, synergy, partnership, and member satisfaction. Because measurable outcomes are often long-term, formative evaluations that measure collaborative functioning can inform stakeholders on areas requiring improvement in order to reach long-term goals. This presentation will discuss the Minnesota Cancer Alliance's (MCA) internal evaluation of its first two years of partnership. The presentation will include background on comprehensive cancer control in Minnesota, the use of an internal, volunteer committee structure for developing and guiding evaluation activities, utility for using theoretical underpinnings, formative evaluation results and sharing recommendations with stakeholders.

Introduction to Comprehensive Cancer Control in Minnesota: Planning, Implementation and Evaluation Lisa payday loan  Stephens payday loan ,  National Cancer Institute,  stephens.lisa@mayo.edu In 2002 the Minnesota Department of Health was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to establish the state's first comprehensive cancer control plan. The rationale of comprehensive cancer control is to build partnerships, reduce unnecessary duplication, improve coordination of resources, and develop innovative strategies to reduce the burden of cancer. Cancer Plan Minnesota, the state's cancer-related strategic plan contains twenty-four objectives and specific strategies for meeting these objectives that encompass the spectrum of cancer, from prevention and early detection to treatment, survivorship and end-of-life care. The Minnesota Cancer Alliance (MCA) provides governance for implementation of the plan. This session is to introduce Minnesota's Comprehensive Cancer Control program, its plan and the MCA structure, which includes the role of the evaluation committee and how a five year evaluation plan was designed to provide direction in measuring progress and identifying areas for program refinement.

Developing Tools and Methods to Operationalize the Evaluation Plan Priscilla payday loan  Flynn payday loan ,  Mayo Clinic,  flynn.priscilla@mayo.edu Minnesota Cancer Alliance (MCA) stakeholders identified an interest in tracking the number and types of members, workgroup activity and progress, partnership synergies and both direct and indirect project costs. Membership registration, MCA annual meeting attendance and work group meeting notes were reviewed to partially provide these data. In addition, a member survey was designed including elements indicated in the literature as integral in forming effective collaboratives. These include a clear understanding of member roles, leadership efficacy, member diversity, communication effectiveness, perceived synergy among members and engaging stakeholders. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to gain a deeper understanding of the benefits and barriers experienced by members. This session will discuss the theory and process of evaluating collaborative partnerships including assessing, educating and focusing the committee on evaluation methods to measure outputs; accessing or developing data collection tools; analyzing data; reporting to stakeholders; and framing unexpected outcomes.

Reporting to Stakeholders and Lessons Learned Julia payday loan  Johnsen payday loan ,  University of Minnesota,  john2314@umn.edu Mixed methods were used to evaluate the processes through which the Minnesota Cancer Alliance (MCA) fosters the development of synergistic relationships across its membership and the perceived efficacy of these efforts in producing examples of increased collaboration among MCA members. An online member survey, semi-structured interviews, direct observations of MCA meetings, and review of meeting minutes were used to collect data from July - September, 2006. Findings revealed that Alliance members felt strongly that the membership was the coalition's greatest asset and perceived that the Alliance added value to their professional lives. Members who were interviewed found it difficult to identify examples of increased collaboration. The literature offered possible explanations for why these apparently incongruent findings could have been expected. This session will explore how the MCA Evaluation team used the Community Coalition Action theory to frame these findings and to discuss the strategies used to present the findings to stakeholders.