Monitoring and evaluating are integral to creating successful multiple intervention programs. Keeping track of changes and assessing their impact tells us where interventions are working, or not, and what activities we should copy, expand or abandon. Because multiple intervention programs have longer timelines and focus on multiple levels and outcomes, monitoring and evaluation can’t just be tacked on at the end — they have to be included in planning from the beginning.

In Module 4 we work on developing tracking and evaluation plans suited to a multi-level, multi-intervention program. You’ll draw on intervention theory to develop ways to measure and evaluate the impact of your intervention on all the socio-ecological system levels you’re aiming at. You’ll also look for information on how to monitor spin-offs and feed results back into planning. To review how to design an evaluation plan for public health programs go to Porteous, N. (1997).