CHES Exam
Health: correct answersState in which physical, mental, and social wellbeing are integrated so that
optimal functioning is possible.
Outcome-focused evaluations: correct answersShow program effect; the audience is made up of funders,
researchers, and other external audience; the method of conducting the evaluation includes research
methods, and external evaluators.
Utilization-focused evaluations: correct answersGet stakeholders to use evaluation findings for decisions
regarding program improvements and future program development; the audience is made up of
program people and funders; the method of conducting the evaluations includes research methods.
The five standards of evaluation established by the American Evaluation Association are: correct
answersUtility (to increase the extent to which program stakeholders find evaluation processes and
products valuable in meeting the needs), feasibility (to increase evaluation effectiveness and efficiency),
propriety (to support what is proper, fair, legal, right, and just in evaluations), accuracy (to increase the
dependability and truthfulness of evaluation representations, propositions, and findings, especially those
that support interpretations and judgements and quality), and evaluation accountability (to encourage
adequate documentation of evaluation and a meta-evaluative perspective focused on improvements and
accountability for evaluation processes and products).
Is the planning and evaluation cycle linear of cyclical? correct answersCyclical, but the cycle is presented
in a linear fashion in the text; to be successful as a program planner or evaluator requires a substantial
degree of flexibility and creativity in recovering from outside influences.
MAPIT model: correct answersMobilize the community; Assess the health status; Plan the program;
Implement the program; and then Track the outcomes.
Funders, either federal agencies or private foundations (stakeholder): correct answersMay use process
evaluations for program accountability and effect evaluations for determining the success of broad
initiatives and individual program effectiveness.
,Project directors and managers (stakeholder): correct answersUse both process and effect evaluation
findings as a basis for seeking further funding as well as for making improvements to the health program.
Program staff (stakeholder): correct answersUse both process and the effect evaluation as a validation of
their efforts and as a justification for their feelings about their success with program participants and
recipients.
Scholars and health professionals (stakeholder): correct answersAccesses the findings of effect
evaluations through professional literature; use effect evaluations as the basis for generating new
theories about what is effective in addressing a particular health problem, and why it is effective.
Policy makers (stakeholders): correct answersUses both published literature and final program reports
regarding process and effect evaluation findings when formulating health policy and making decisions
about program resource allocation.
Community action groups, community members, and program participants and recipients (stakeholders):
correct answersMost likely to advocate for a community health assessment and to use process
evaluation results ass a basis for seeking additional resources or to hold the program accountable.
Pilot program: correct answersThe program does not rely on any existing format or theory, so simple trial
and error is used to determine whether it is feasible and might produce an effect; likely to be small and
somewhat experimental because a similar type of program has not been developed or previously
attempted.
Model program: correct answersIf the pilot program appears to be successful and doable, as
documented by both the process and effect evaluations, it may evolve into a model program; has
interventions that are formalized, or explicit, with protocols that standardize the intervention, and the
program is delivered under conditions that are controlled by the program staff and developers; difficult
to sustain over time because it is provided under ideal weather than realistic conditions; evaluating the
effects of this type of program is easier than a pilot program.
Prototype program: correct answersIf the model program shows promise for addressing the health
problem, it can be copied and implemented as a prototype program; implemented under realistic
conditions and is easily replicated and tailored to the organization and the specifics of the local target
audience;
,Institutionalized program: correct answersIf the prototype program is successful and stable, it may
become institutionalized within the organization as an ongoing part of the services provided; it is
possible for successful programs that are institutionalized across a number of organizations in a
community to gain wide acceptance as a standard practice, with the establishment of an expectation
that a good agency with provide the program.
Professionally institutionalized program: correct answersAt this last stage, the health program has
become institutionalized within health services.
Community needs assessment: correct answersA type of evaluation that is performed to collect data
about the health problems of a particular group. The data collected for this purpose are then used to
tailor the health program to the news and distinctive characteristics of the group.
Process evaluations: correct answersThe evaluation begins at the same time that the program starts.
Focus on the degree to which the program has been implemented and planned and on the quality of the
program implementation. The underlying framework for designing a process evaluation comes from the
process theory component of the overall program theory developed during the planning stage.
Process theory: correct answersDelineates the logistical activities, resources, and interventions needed
to achieve the health change in program participants or recipients. Information from the process
evaluation is used to plan, revise, or improve the program.
Effect evaluation: correct answersAnswer a key question; Did the program make a difference? The effect
theory component to the program theory is used as the basis for designing the evaluation. Effect
evaluations are more commonly known as outcome or impact evaluations. Outcome evaluations focus
on the more immediate effects of the program, whereas impact evaluations may have more long-term
focus.
Cost evaluation: correct answersEncompass a variety of more specific cost-benefit evaluations and cost-
utility evaluations.
Comprehensive evaluation: correct answersInvolve analyzing needs assessment data, process evaluation
data, effect evaluation data, and cost evaluation data as a set of data.
, Meta-evaluation: correct answersIs done by combing the findings from previous outcome evaluations of
various programs for the same health problem. The purpose is to gain insights into which of the various
programmatic approaches has had the most effect and to determine the maximum effect that a
particular programmatic approach has had on the health problem.
Summative evaluations: correct answersAre done at the conclusion of a program to provide a conclusive
statement regarding program effects. Contrasted with formative evaluations.
Formative evaluation: correct answersUsed to refer to program assessments that are performed early in
the implementation of the program and used to make change to the program.
Mandate to evaluate: correct answersA mandate to evaluate a program is always linked in some way to
the funding agencies, whether a governmental body or foundation. If an evaluation is mandated, then
the contract for receiving the program funding will include language specifying the parameters and
timeline for mandated evaluation. The mandate for an evaluation may specify whether the evaluation
will be done by project staff or external evaluators or both.
Voluntary evaluations: correct answersAre initiated, planned, and completed by project staff in an effort
to make improvements.
When not to evaluate: correct answersWhen there are no questions about the program, when the
program has no clear direction, when stakeholders cannot agree on the program objectives, and when
there is not enough money to conduct a sound evaluation.
Public health pyramid: correct answersThe top level contains direct healthcare services, such as medical
care, psychological counseling, hospital care, and pharmacy services. The second level is called enabling
services, which are those health and social services that support or supplement the health of aggregates.
Aggregates are groups of people who share a defining characteristic, such as a mental illness. The next
level is population-based services, such as immunization programs. Supporting the pyramid at its base is
the infrastructure of the healthcare system and the public health system.
Ecological approach: correct answersPostulates that individuals can be influenced by factors in their
immediate social and physical environment.
