The ENCOMPASS framework: a practical guide for the evaluation of public health programmes in complex adaptive systems

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Systems Science
• Program Evaluation

Background:

• Systems thinking is crucial for addressing complex public health issues such as childhood obesity.
• A need exists for practical guidance on evaluating public health programs within complex adaptive systems.
• Existing approaches lack comprehensive frameworks for systems evaluations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a practical evaluation framework for public health programs in complex adaptive systems.
• To support researchers in designing and conducting systems evaluations.
• To address the gap in guidance for evaluating complex public health interventions.

Main Methods:

• Literature search for existing public health systems evaluation studies.
• Extraction and comparison of key characteristics for conducting systems evaluations.
• Development of the Evaluation of Programmes in Complex Adaptive Systems (ENCOMPASS) framework based on identified characteristics and a case study (LIKE program).

Main Results:

• The ENCOMPASS framework comprises five iterative stages: system dynamics perspective, boundary definition, pre-existing system understanding, dynamic program monitoring, and outcome measurement in terms of system changes.
• The framework integrates key characteristics from existing studies.
• It offers a practical, applied approach to systems evaluation.

Conclusions:

• The ENCOMPASS framework provides a comprehensive and practical approach for evaluating public health programs in complex adaptive systems.
• It guides the entire evaluation process, from system understanding to measuring change.
• The framework is expected to evolve as the field of systems evaluation advances.