Program Planning

Glinoga, Kristine
Lazatin, Bryan
OBJECTIVES:
• Discuss Program Planning and Program
Implementation
• Discuss 5 Models in Public Health Program Planning
• Discuss the Steps in Program Planning
• Discuss the Program Goals and Objectives
• Discuss Situational Analysis, Its organization and
significance in a Health sector
• Discuss SWOT Analysis
• Discuss Problem tree
What is a Plan or Planning?
Planning (also called forethought) is the process of thinking
about and organizing the activities required to achieve a
desired goal with the available resources.

The planning process:

(1)identifies the goals or objectives to be achieved,
(2)formulates strategies to achieve them,
(3)arranges or creates the means required, and
(4)implements, directs, and monitors all steps in their proper
sequence.
PLANNING…
• “the deliberate introduction of desired social change in orderly and
acceptable ways.”
- Henrik Blum, 1974

• Nutt(1984) identified several ways in which planning is visible: as

forecasting, as problem solving, as programming, as design, as policy
analysis, and as a response to problem.
He concluded that planning involves synthesis in terms of putting together
plans, policy, programs, or something else that is new. In this regard he
viewed planning as “creating change”.

• Described good planning as the popular adoption of democratic reforms

in the provision of public goods.
-Hock, 1994
Types of Planning

1. Strategic planning – A systematic process of envisioning a

desired future, and translating this vision into broadly defined
goals or objectives and a sequence of steps to achieve them.

2. Program planning – A plan of action aimed at accomplishing a

clear objective, with details on what work is to be done, by
whom, when, and what means or resources will be used.

3. Operational planning –
A type of work planning which analyses a strategic plan
into operational periods
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ON PLANNING
IN PUBLIC HEALTH
 The history of public health planning began in antiquity with the
environmental planning of water and sewer systems in cities in the West
(Rosen,1958) and civic planning in the East

 These early forms of planning for the health and well being of populations did
not change dramatically until the late twentieth century.

 Population-based planning became necessary with the advent of

immunizations, including the administration of the first polio vaccine.

 In public health, Henrik Blum (1974) was among the scholars to formally
consider what public health planning is and how it ought to be done. He
advocated the rational approach to health planning, which included
considering the problem and systematically applying a solution.

 The rational approach to health planning was further developed in Dever’s

work (1980), which extensively applied epidemiological techniques to the
identification and prioritization of health problems.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ON PLANNING
IN PUBLIC HEALTH
 Nutt (1979) developed a model of the planning process that included stages and
elements that were interactive and iterative.

 His model not only included activities, but also the central notion that a problem is
real and that awareness of the problem is the stimulus of the planning activities.

 His work expanded on the model of organizational planning and focused on

planning as done by health care organizations “Organizational strategic planning”.

 Beginning in the mid-1980s, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
began to develop and promote methodologies for systematic approaches to
health planning for those working in public health.

 These models are important for their structured approach to planning health
programs and for synthesizing the knowledge available at the time about health
and program planning.
MODELS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PLANNING
1. PATCH
 The Planning Approach to Community Health (PATCH) was based on Green’s
PRECEDE (Predisposing, Reinforcing, and Enabling Factors in Community Education
Development and Evaluation) model of health education planning.

 Built in to it was the notion that health promotion is a process that enables people
to take greater control on their health and seek out ways to improve their health
(US-DOHHS).

 It was implemented as the first national attempt to standardize public health

planning and to provide technical assistance to local health agencies.

 It incorporated information on each several elements: one is community

participation in the process, next is the use of data to drive the development of
programs and a comprehensive health promotion strategy and lastly the element
of evaluation for program improvement.

 Although CDC no longer provides training on using PATCH, materials are available
though the CDC website.
MODELS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PLANNING
2. APEXPH
 The Assessment Protocol for Excellence in Public Health (APEXPH) began
in 1987. A key feature of the approach is its addressing of the three core
functions of public health: ASSESSMENT, ASSSURANCE, and POLICY
DEVELOPMENT.

 In one study, 24 county health departments in the state of Washington

used the APEXPH model to assess their strengths and weaknesses in each
of these functional areas of assessment and implement.

 The results could then be used to identify specific areas that needed
strengthening.

 It differs from PATCH in that it provides a framework for assessing the

organization and management of health departments, as well as
framework for working with community members in assessing the health
of the community.
MODELS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PLANNING
3. MAPP
 More recently, the CDC has released The Mobilizing for Action through
Planning and Partnership (MAPP) model. It is a strategic planning tool that
helps public health leaders facilitate community prioritization of public
health issues and identify resources for addressing them.

 Steps In MAPP:
1. The first phase of MAPP is to mobilize community members and
organizations under the leadership of public health agencies.
2. The second phase is to generate a shared vision and common values that
provide a framework for long-range planning.
3. The third step involves conducting four assessments of four areas:
community strengths, the local public health system, community health
status, and the forces of change.
4. The final step is implementation
MODELS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PLANNING

4. CHIP
 The Community Health Improvement Process (CHIP),
developed in 1997 is a less widely known tool for community
health planning that incorporates organizational performance
monitoring and community assets, followed by strategic
planning, implementation, and evaluation.
MODELS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PLANNING

5. PACE-EH
 The Protocol for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health
(PACE-EH) focuses the community assessment on evaluation of environmental
health conditions. Thus, it is a community environmental health assessment
tool.
 The data gathered via this tool are then used to identify populations at risk
and set priorities.
 A key feature of PACE-EH is the emphasis on health equity and social justice.
 As with the other models, it focuses on building relationships with
constituents and sharing the power and responsibilities with the community.
 In March 2006, a summit was held to address the barriers to its use and the
applications of its tools. It highlighted the fact that more than 60 communities
have used PACE-EH primarily with a focus on improving air and water quality.
MODELS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PLANNING
STEPS IN PROGRAM PLANNING
Step 1: Define your stakeholders
 Your stakeholders are the:
• supporters,
• implementers,
• recipients, and
• decision-makers related to your program

 Getting them involved early on will help you get different

perspectives on the program and establish common
expectations.

 This helps to clarify goals and objectives of your program, so

everyone understands its purpose.
STEPS IN PROGRAM PLANNING
Step 2: Describe the program
• Taking the time to articulate what your program does and
what you want to accomplish is essential to establishing your
evaluation plan.
• Your descriptions should answer questions like:
1. What is the goal of our program?
2. Which activities will we pursue to reach our goal?
3. How will we do it?
4. What are our resources?
5. How many people do we expect to serve?
STEPS IN PROGRAM PLANNING
Step 3: Focus the design of your evaluation
 As you begin formulating your evaluation, think
about the specific purpose of the evaluation:
1. What questions are you trying to answer?
2. How will the information be used?
3. What information-gathering methods will best get me
what I need?
 Evaluations can focus on process, means, resources,
activities, and outputs. They can focus on outcomes
or how well you achieved your goal. You may also
choose to evaluate both process and outcomes.
STEPS IN PROGRAM PLANNING
Step 4: Gather evidence
 Qualitative and quantitative data are the two main forms of
data you may collect. Three commonly used methods used
for gathering qualitative evaluation data are: key informant
interviews, focus groups, and participant observation.

 Qualitative data offers descriptive information that may

capture experience, behavior, opinion, value, feeling,
knowledge, sensory response, or observable phenomena.

 Quantitative methods refer to information that may be

measured by numbers or tallies. Methods for collecting
quantitative data include counting systems, surveys, and
questionnaires.
STEPS IN PROGRAM PLANNING
Step 5: Draw conclusions
 This is the step where you answer the bottom-line question:
1. Are we getting better,
2. getting worse, or
3. staying the same level?
 Data comparisons show trends, gaps, strengths, weaknesses.
• You can compare evaluation data with targets set for the program,
against standards established by your stakeholders or funders, or
• Make comparisons with other programs.
STEPS IN PROGRAM PLANNING
Step 6: Ensure use of information with a thoughtful
presentation of findings
 It is important that all the work you put into planning the
program and creating the evaluation gets used for quality
mprovement.
 When you present your findings and recommendations, it is
important to know the values, beliefs, and perceptions of
your group; build on the group’s background and build on
common ground; and state the underlying purpose for your
recommendations before you get to the details.