Evaluating community and campus environmental public health programs

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Public Health Research
• Program Evaluation

Background:

• The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences' (NIEHS) Partnerships for Environmental Public Health (PEPH) program aims to improve environmental public health.
• Grantees require tools to effectively map programs and document achievements in environmental public health research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide an overview of the NIEHS PEPH Evaluation Metrics Manual.
• To describe the collaborative development of the manual with grantees and community partners.
• To explain how logic models can identify metrics for environmental public health research.

Main Methods:

• The article describes the creation and components of the Evaluation Metrics Manual.
• It details the collaborative process involving grantees and community partners.
• A case study illustrates the application of logic models for metric identification.

Main Results:

• The manual offers a structured approach for grantees to map programs using logic models.
• It facilitates the identification of measures to document achievements in environmental public health research.
• The case study demonstrates a successful implementation in addressing environmental justice issues.

Conclusions:

• The Evaluation Metrics Manual is a valuable tool for NIEHS grantees and community partners.
• Logic models provide a framework for developing effective evaluation metrics in environmental public health.
• Collaborative approaches are essential for addressing complex environmental health challenges.