Objectives and Indicators for MCH Programs

1
Objectives and Indicators for MCH Programs

• MCH in Developing Countries
• January 29, 2008

2
Why discuss MCH program objectives?

• How will you know if you are successful if you
  dont identify what you want to do?
• There are always limited resources
• Clear objectives are often a donor requirement
• Developing appropriate and useful objectives is
  not always simple or intuitive...
• Note -- they are NOT a substitute for doing the
  right thing ( based on needs assessment)

3
Objectives and Indicators

• Session purposes
• Promote an understanding of the importance of
  good objectives and indicators, and their
  contribution to effective program management
• Provide or refine skills needed to develop MCH
  program objectives

4
Objectives and Indicators

• Session objectives -- by the end of the session,
  participants should be able to
• explain the terms goal, objective,
  indicator and target
• describe the characteristics of objectives and
  indicators that are useful for program management
• write a smart objective for the country
  project and state its corresponding indicator

5
Logic model flow chart - how program efforts
contribute to the programs goals
Processes
Objectives
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
Outcomes
Impact
Causality
6
Processes
Objectives
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
Outcomes
Results

• Any action, funded or unfunded, undertaken to
  achieve a program result
• Assignments, tasks, stuff we do to achieve our
  objectives!

7
Processes
Objectives
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
Outcomes
Impact

• Objectives can include anything that is clearly
  intended to be achieved through the program or
  project
• Output level objectives are those resulting from
  first order activities
• Impact level objectives refer to the desired
  long-term or ultimate result
• Intermediate objectives that fall somewhere
  between these two are usually referred to as
  outcomes - also known as effects

8
Processes
Objectives
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
Outcomes
Results

• Output level objectives are those that result
  from activities -- things your program does
• In most instances dont represent population
  change
• Important area for program/project monitoring
• Frequently bean counting
• Useful for program management purposes
• And -- donors may hold you accountable for the
  beans

9
Processes
Objectives
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
Outcomes
Impact

• Impact and outcomes are
• Changes in the condition of a program participant
  orchanges in conditions that affect a
  participant results
• Whether an objective is a impact or outcome
  depends on its level in the causality chain
• Impact describes the long-term results
• Outcomes describe the immediate effects on
  participants
• The ability of a program to produce results
  (i.e., outcomes, impact, or both) depends on your
  resources, program duration, and many, many
  social, economic and cultural conditions that
  affect participants in the program

10
Processes
Objectives
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
Outcomes
Impact

• Objectives should be the highest order objectives
  for which you can be held accountable
• They should be S M A R T
• S - simple
• M - measurable (in the program setting)
• A - appropriate (attainable, technically correct,
  important)
• R - realistic
• T - time-limited

11
Processes
Objectives
Inputs
Activities
Outputs
Outcomes
Impact

• Lets consider this objective...

The project willl improve the understanding of
mothers about the importance of oral rehydration
therapy and the need to obtain immunizations for
their children.
12
Lets try again.
Processes
Objectives
Outputs
Inputs
Activities
Outcomes
Impact
By the end of the project, 80 of children aged
12-24 months in the project area will have
completed their basic immunizations
13
Program effects flow chart
Identify the indicators for each objective
What else is needed?
14
Program effects flow chart

• Indicators
• Answer the question, How will we measure what
  we have achieved?
• Target a specific level of achievement

15
By the end of the project, 80 of children aged
12-24 months in the project area will have
completed their basic immunizations
What is the indicator for this objective?
16
The of children aged 12-24 months in the
project area who have completed their basic
immunizations
Indicator
17

• Who to involve in setting objectives and
  indicators?
• The community, partners
• Project staff
• Others familiar with relevant
• data
• Published literature, project
• reports
• When?
• Iterative - As work on program development
  proceeds
• Check feasibility before finalizing
• Its OK to revise objectives if rationale is
  provided

18
Practicality

• Are the data associated with the indicator
  practical? Ask whether...
• Quality data are currently available
• The data can be procured on a regular and timely
  basis
• Primary data collection, when necessary, is
  feasible and cost-effective

19
All of these contribute to the program goals --
broad, long-term intended results
20
Final thoughts on the selection of objectives and
indicators

• Indicator quality presumes data quality be aware
  of the limitations (regarding validity,
  reliability, and timeliness) of your data
• More indicators arent necessarily better you
  need enough information to get an honest
  reckoning
• Meaningful qualitative indicators are often okay
  and sometimes preferable

Use objectives for managementits the main
reason we measure performance Take a practical
approachget adequate information that is
available at a reasonable cost to the
program Indicators should make sense to a
development professional, but be understandable
to interested persons