Evaluation

Core Programme Clusters

Disability, Injury Prevention & Rehabilitation

Community Based Rehabilitation, an Urban Experience Evaluation The term evaluation is frequently used in planning and management circles. However though commonly used, it is not well understood and less frequently practiced. Evaluation is a systematic way of learning from experience through critical analysis so that the successes can be retained, replicated and the mistakes/failures can be avoided in the future. Evaluation should be part of the process of implementing the programme and should be critically looked at during the planning itself. Concurrent or ongoing evaluation takes place on a day to day basis. The programme however must ultimately achieve what it set out to do. It would be of little use if all the steps in training the LS and their field activities were carried out according to the plan, but the QOL of the PWD did not change at all. So all evaluation must also have a terminal component after which the next stage of the programme can begin. Since evaluation calls for objective and critical analysis, it is important to have adequate information to do this. Hence, there is a need to develop good quality information on an ongoing basis. Surveys are also needed to develop indicators that will clearly measure the outcomes that are expected.		Foreword Community Based Rehabilitation Why CBR? How we did CBR? Activities Methodology Lessons from the field Evaluation Sustainability Acknowledgement Contact
	In our project, we carried out an ongoing evaluation through out the project. Through pre and post tests the knowledge and attitude of the Local Supervisors during the training were assessed. The LS gave feedback on the content and methods of training and all this information was used to improve thetraining programme. The LS were assessed during field visits by the staff and ongoing training focused on areas identified for further training.
Through weekly review with project staff the process of programme were evaluated on a regular basis and programme plans modified or changed accordingly. (eg. It was decided to make a bar chart of LS attendance for the training each month and use this as a motivating tool to achieve excellence) Each special programme like a health camp, eye camp or school awareness had a post evaluation and the feedback was utilized to improve the next activity. (eg. As part of health screening camp, it was decided to keep one or two wheel chairs and a hurdle for the public to experience the disabling condition in a wheel chair)
We used both quantitative and qualitative information in our project. We set up data collection systems through which we could get information on the population, numbers of PWD, types of disabilities and so on. Through regular review meetings, the team including the local supervisors critically looked at these data. Community members and PWD were not regular members of this process. This is a weakness in this project. Ongoing case studies on PWD gave us information that helped us to assess QOL as well as get feedback from the PWD and their families. In any project or intervention there can be short team outcomes and long term ones. In a CBR project the long-term outcomes are probably more important but when the interventions are current, only short-term evaluation will be possible. Therefore it is important that the community, including the PWD develop skills in evaluation. Usually evaluation processes use quantitative date. In programmes like CBR however when we seek to improve the QOL, both quantitative and qualitative information/data become important.