Moving Along, Growing Strong 1997.

The Final Report of the Atlantic Community Action Program for Children (CAPC) Regional Evaluation.
235 pages
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Description

Moving Along, Growing Strong is the Final Report of the Atlantic Community Action Program for Children (CAPC) Regional Evaluation carried out in 1996-97. The evaluation focused on qualitative information on process and impact to flesh out and expand on the nation-wide CAPC evaluation. The stories used in the report add depth and context and bring forward the voice of the people involved as a basis for understanding the program, building community capacity, and promoting action.

The overall research question for the Atlantic CAPC Regional Evaluation was whether the health and well-being of participating children (0 to 6 years of age) and their families in Atlantic Canada improved. The participatory research model used for the evaluation empowered CAPC parents, volunteers, staff, provincial and federal government representatives, and community stakeholders. Those involved in CAPC were part of the decision-making process on what research questions were most important, which methods were most acceptable and feasible, and what results were most meaningful.

The 235-page evaluation report describes the evaluation process in considerable detail. Part one describes CAPC and its development in the Atlantic region. Part two describes the regional evaluation process, including participation, and data collection and analysis methods. Part three summarizes the evaluation results relating to implementation and process, individual impacts, community partnerships, impacts of adopting a community development approach, and impacts of the regional evaluation itself. The evaluation revealed valuable information about implementation and process as well as the positive effects CAPC has had on parents and children. The results also show how community partnerships developed over time, and demonstrate the effective collaborative strategies used by CAPC groups. The final four sections are conclusions, recommendations, reflections, and directions for future research.

The overall conclusion of the evaluation is that CAPC works! The evaluation clearly demonstrated that CAPC projects contributed to the well-being of parents, children, and families by directly addressing at least four major determinants of health: healthy child development, personal health practices and social skills, social support networks, and social environment.

Credits

Contract Firms:

• Extension Community Development Cooperative, St. John's, NL
• Landal Incorporated, Moncton, NB
• Co-principal Investigators: Ann O'Hanlon, Madine VanderPlaat
• Atlantic CAPC Regional Evaluation Sub-Committee (ACES) Management Team:
  • Yolande Samson, Health Canada, Chairperson and Overall Manager
  • Michelle Rivard, Health Canada, Contract Manager
  • Carole Landry, Prince Edward Island and Federal Government Representative
  • Nicole Bernard, New Brunswick and Project Representative
  • Pauline Raven, Nova Scotia and Project Representative
  • Lynn Vivian-Book, Newfoundland and Labrador and Provincial Government Representative
• Editor / Plain Language Writer: Janis Wood Catano

Availability

This publication is available for download in English (2.19 MB) and French (2.51 MB). You will require the Adobe Acrobat Reader.

The Executive Summary is also available as a separate document.

For more information on obtaining copies of the document or executive summary, call or write

Public Health Agency of Canada
Suite 1525, 15th Floor, Maritime Centre
1505 Barrington Street
Halifax, NS B3J 3Y6
Tel: (902) 426-2700
Fax: (902) 426-9689
E-mail: atlantic-atlantique@phac-aspc.gc.ca