Assessing Community-Based Public Health Plans: An Example From US Army Injury Prevention

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Military Health
• Program Evaluation

Background:

• US Army requires community health coalitions to develop action plans.
• A standardized review process for these plans has been lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate injury prevention action plans using the Plan Quality Index (PQI).
• To provide recommendations for quality improvement to reduce injuries in the US Army.

Main Methods:

• The Plan Quality Index (PQI) was implemented to assess 17 injury prevention action plans from Army installations.
• Statistical analyses (t tests, chi-square tests) compared high- and low-scoring plans.

Main Results:

• PQI scores ranged from 9 to 78. Weaknesses included lack of SMART objectives, responsible parties, evaluation plans, and timelines.
• High-ranking plans (mean PQI 64.6) significantly outperformed low-ranking plans (mean PQI 26.2).

Conclusions:

• The PQI offers a standardized, evidence-based framework for evaluating and improving community health action plans.
• This evaluation facilitated actionable recommendations to enhance injury prevention and support military health and readiness.