Outreach Evaluation Resource Center
Quarterly Report: August - October, 2004
Training and continuing education
No trainings conducted during this period.
Consultation with Network members and NNO
Proposed items for a PubMed/MedlinePlus Training Follow-up Survey were finalized, based on feedback collected at the May RML Director's meeting. C. Burroughs asked Aron Beal (Web-STOC) to design a web-based survey collection form to collect responses to the survey items. UW Catalyst software was considered as a platform for the web-based surveys. However, Mr. Beal found that the UW software did not allow merging of OARF data with survey responses. Thus, Mr. Beal began design of a local database with customized functions required for the web-based survey.
C. Burroughs piloted an email invitation and the web-based survey with NN/LM and NNO staff and several other representative Network member respondents in September, 2004.
Assistance with analysis, synthesis, and reporting of evaluation results
C. Burroughs began discussions and planning with Web-STOC for survey distribution and data collection related to the PubMed/MedlinePlus Training Followup Survey.
Final revisions were made to the Participant
Information sheet to collect voluntary email addresses of
outreach participants willing to participate in the
followup survey. Specifically, on the Participant
Information Sheet, "Section 3. Special Populations
Served" was replaced with "Section 3. My email
address."
The revised PI sheet was installed in the OARF system and
posted on http://nnlm.gov/evaluation/datacollection/
starting August 19. Mr. Beal also wrote a program for
automated survey invitations to emails collected on the
Participant Information Sheet.
Mr. Beal then developed a database to match respondents' answers with mirror data from OARF records, such as the date, length, type, and content of the session attended by the survey respondent. When respondents fill out the web-based survey, the database populates their responses, based on the code identifier (included in the email inviting them to the survey), with the OARF data about the class they took (e.g. location, date, length, content, etc). The database also links survey responses with information from the class signup sheet, such as zipcode at work or home, and the survey respondent's role in attending the class (member of general public, health professional, librarian, etc). Mr. Beal designed an interface to view the data, called the Survey Results Browser. This capacity allows for a rich descriptive analysis of the survey data that can be viewed dynamically by NN/LM staff.
Communications and collaboration
C. Burroughs continued participation as member of the steering committee for the upcoming Communtity Based Outreach (CBO) Symposium Steering Committee.
As chair of the Outcomes and Assessment Panel , C. Burroughs finalized commitments by 4 evaluation experts invited to submit white papers and give presentations for the Assessment & Outcome Panel at the NLM Community Based Outreach. C. Burroughs held several teleconferences with the panelists. She developed goals for the panel and identified the following key areas to be addressed:
In underserved and hard to reach communities, what are effective ways to evaluate community-based interventions to:
- Improve use of health information resources
- Enhance capacity for healthier communities
- Improve health outcomes
C. Burroughs also participated in conference calls for the CBO Perspectives session at the Symposium.
Utilization and promotion of the evaluation guide
NN/LM PNR continued to distribute the guide based on request.
Administration
For the NN/LM Centers Review requirement, C. Burroughs developed documentation and a presentation about OERC's progress in the current contract. The review was conducted via teleconference on September 9, 2004.
C. Burroughs developed an agreement and scope of work for Cynthia Olney related to her OERC consultation and other special projects to be assigned.
