Evaluation of (oral) health interventions : an example in preschool children
(2011) 16th Annual Meeting EADPH European Association of Dental Public Health — Location: Rome (22.September.2011)
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- Abstract
- Oral health promotion campaigns for preschool children are widely developed and implemented, but systematic evaluation of the process of implementing such campaigns is scarce, and little is known about the conditions under which oral health promotion programmes can be implemented successfully. This presentation draws on current evaluation theory to demonstrate the possibilities for process and outcome evaluation of oral health promotion, using an intervention among preschool children in Flanders, Belgium, as an example. The project, called Smile for Life, was launched in 2003 and targeted towards newborn children (and their parents). A multi-component intervention was developed and implemented in a primary health care setting, the well-baby clinics organized by the governmental organization Child & Family. Approximately 1,000 children were included in the program and followed up until the age of 5 years. Outcome evaluation involved the comparison of the participating children with a control group of age-matched children who had not been exposed to the intervention, and who were followed up for the same period of time. All children were clinically examined at the ages of 3 and 5 years, in kindergarten, using a standardized methodology. In addition, parents completed questionnaires shortly after their baby was born and when their child reached the age of 3 and 5. These questionnaires had been validated prior on a pilot sample, and were used to collect information on socio-demographic characteristics of the child, oral health behaviors of the child and the parents (dietary habits, dental hygiene and preventive visits to the dentist), and the main psychological determinants of oral behavior) as identified on the basis of the Theory of Planned Behavior (intentions, attitudes, perceived norms and perceived behavioural control) . Evaluation of the implementation process focused on the implementation fidelity, which acts as a moderator between the planned intervention and the intended outcomes. The implementation fidelity of the Smile for Life project was evaluated using a series of qualitative and quantitative methods to consider six fidelity components identified in the frameworks of Carroll et al (2007) and Hasson (2010), notably intervention complexity, the availability of facilitation strategies, the quality of delivery, recruitment, participant responsiveness, and context. The presentation will outline the development, set-up and implementation of the Smile for Life project and present the results of the process and outcome evaluation. It will be argued that process evaluation of complex interventions is essential to interpret the (lack of) success, and that linking implementation fidelity to outcome evaluations contributes to understanding the conditions under which oral health promotion programmes can be successful.
- Affiliations
KU Leuven School of Dental Health
Citations
Declerck, D., & Van den Broucke, S. (2011). Evaluation of (oral) health interventions : an example in preschool children. 16th Annual Meeting EADPH European Association of Dental Public Health, Rome. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/61983