From Babies To Boardrooms...
CAPC and CPNP contributions to Public Health

A STUDY OF SYSTEM-LEVEL INVOLVEMENT

Kathleen Flanagan

Prepared for
Public Health Agency of Canada
Atlantic Regional Office

November 2005

PDF Format (525 KB)

The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Également disponible en français sous le titre : Du bébé au conseil d'administration... Les contributions du PACE et du PCNP à la santé publique - Une étude sur la participation au niveau du système

Contents may not be reproduced for commercial purposes, but any other reproduction, with acknowledgements, is encouraged. Please credit the source as follows:
From Babies to Boardrooms...CAPC and CPNP Contributions to Public Health - A Study of System Level Involvement, 2005. Prepared by Kathleen Flanagan for the Public Health Agency of Canada, Atlantic Regional Office.

For more information, contact:
Public Health Agency of Canada
Atlantic Regional Office
1525 - 1505 Barrington Street
Halifax NS B3J 3Y6
Tel: (902) 426-2700
Fax: (902) 426-9689
E-mail: atlantic-atlantique@phac-aspc.gc.ca
Website: www.atlantic.phac.gc.ca

© Public Health Agency of Canada, 2005

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author wishes to acknowledge the work of the many CAPC and CPNP projects in the Atlantic provinces, whose evaluation reports not only documented the nature and extent of system-level involvement in the region but brought it to life through their stories and quotes. These reports also described the impact of these activities on individuals, projects, communities, and the system itself. As well, the author wishes to acknowledge the work of Dr. Natalie Kishchuk, who conducted the key informant interviews related to system-level involvement with CAPC and CPNP in the Atlantic Region. Both of these sources of evidence provided insights and an understanding of the contributions, challenges, and potential of CAPC and CPNP involvement in activities and work related to the broader system of governments and universities in the areas of policy, programs, and research/evaluation.

The author also wishes to thank the members of the Atlantic Children's Evaluation Sub-Committee (ACES), for their time, expertise, and participation. Their patience, feedback, and suggestions were very much appreciated. Special thanks is extended to the project representatives: Joan Glode, Atlantic Aboriginal projects; Bernice Hancock, Newfoundland and Labrador projects; Julie Hickey, New Brunswick and Francophone projects; JoAnna LaTulippe Rochon, Nova Scotia projects; and Laura Quinn, Prince Edward Island projects; to provincial government Joint Management/Program Advisory Committee representative Claudette Landry; and to the representatives of the Public Health Agency of Canada, including Angela Berrette, Frances Ennis, Yolande Samson, and Judy Watson.

And, finally, the author wishes to specifically acknowledge the support of Yolande Samson, Evaluation Consultant for the Public Health Agency of Canada, Atlantic Regional Office, and Chairperson of ACES. Her experience, expertise, and unfaltering support were indispensable to this work.

FOREWORD

For the past number of years, stakeholders involved with the Community Action Program for Children (CAPC) and the Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program (CPNP) in the Atlantic Region have participated in a collaborative effort to develop an evaluation and reporting system that captures the richness and complexity of the impacts of these initiatives. As members of the Atlantic Children's Evaluation Sub-Committee (ACES), our role in working with the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) during the development of this framework was facilitated by the thoughtful contributions of the many people who participated and was enriched by the multiple perspectives we bring as representatives of projects, provincial governments, and PHAC.

Based on the new evaluation and reporting system, the projects' 2005 evaluation reports described how CAPC and CPNP's core elements - supportive environments, participation and involvement, and capacity building - impact individuals, the projects, communities, and the broader system. The results of the synthesis of these project evaluation reports, as well as other sources of information, will be used to produce an Atlantic CAPC/CPNP Regional Evaluation Report.

This system level study is the first attempt in the Atlantic Region to document the level of CAPC and CPNP involvement with the broader system of governments and universities in the areas of public policy, program practice, and research and evaluation. System-level involvement had been reported in project evaluation reports by 30 CAPC and CPNP projects from all four Atlantic provinces. A survey of key partners in governments, universities, and other provincial organizations had also been done through a contract. The information from these two sources is now available for analysis, which will provide us with important findings and enable us to review the outcomes and revise, if necessary, the indicators for the system-level work.

As members of ACES, we have been pleased to provide direction to this work. We recognize that the broader system plays a key role in influencing the environment for pregnant women, children, and families, especially those who are experiencing difficult situations. The analysis of the impact of CAPC/CPNP system-level work has the potential to contribute to the ongoing development of initiatives for young children at the national, provincial, and municipal levels.

We also hope that the information in this report will assist projects and system-level partners to more fully understand the implications of system-level activities within the scope of health promotion and public health and to work together to develop an action plan for future work.

Members of the Atlantic Children's Evaluation Sub-Committee (ACES), 2005

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
INTRODUCTION
THE PROGRAMS: CAPC AND CPNP
				How Do the Programs Work?
				Program Evaluation in the Atlantic Region
				Getting to the Heart of CAPC and CPNP
				The Core Elements
				Levels of Change: A Social Ecological Approach
				Growing up in Interesting Times
CAPC AND CPNP CONTRIBUTIONS AT THE SYSTEM-LEVEL
				CAPC and CPNP Involvement in System-Level Activities
				Core Elements and System Level Activities
WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
				CAPC and CPNP: Integral Parts of Broader Networks
				Mutual Benefits
CAPC AND CPNP, SOCIAL CAPITAL, AND PUBLIC HEALTH
				Building Social Capital
				Putting It All Together
CHALLENGES
CONCLUSIONS
				What Does the Study of CAPC and CPNP Projects' Involvement with System-Level Activities Tell Us?
				Where to from Here?
APPENDICES
				Appendix A: Data Collection Questions Used by Projects for System Level Involvement
				Appendix B: Data Collection Questions Used in System Level Key Informant Interviews
				Appendix C: Core Elements and System-Level Activity
				Appendix D: Examples of Interconnected Relationships Among Federal/National, Provincial/Regional/Municipal, Community, and CAPC and CPNP Programs
				Appendix E: Health Goals for Canada as reported on www.healthycanadians.ca
ENDNOTES
BIBLIOGRAPHY

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: CAPC/CPNP and System Relationships

Figure 2: Reciprocal Cycle of Benefits

Figure 3: CAPC and CPNP Core Elements Supporting Public Health

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Social Capital and System-Level Involvement