Formulario de búsqueda

Ask an Advisor Answers

Question:
I am looking to develop an assessment of baseline health information for a group of people in a different country that has asked for a health clinic to be built with the help of another outreach group. The outreach group needs to find a way to establish why the community wants the health clinic and what it will be used for, along with a baseline assessment. My degree is in public health so I have been asked to help with this. It has been so long since I have created something like this and was looking for a place to start as there are a number of obstacles to overcome with this assessment (like language, culture/societal norms etc). Any guidance would be appreciated.
Answer:

Hello Sarah,
Thank you for reaching out to us with such an initiative. It can be difficult assessing the needs of a community, especially if you had a number of barriers such as distance, culture, and language. We faced a similar challenge during my work with a mental health NGO working on Syrian refugees integration in  Lebanon. The NGO has previously implemented the training program in Lebanese schools with local students, however this time they needed to implement it unto Syrian children possibly suffering from PTSD. The NGO overcame this challenge by first using academic search engines to find similar studies/training programs internationally and locally. These studies/programs allowed the organization to locate people working in Syrian refugee communities and are more knowledgeable of the culture or have already conducted a study concerning the needs of the community; and partnerships were formed on that basis. 
It will help if you begin your search with similar programs/clinics implemented in the area, or surrounding areas, and touch base with them. That is a start to build upon, since they are already familiar with the needs of their communities. 
Also, please follow the links bellow for a more detailed guide on the how to:
Chapter 3. Assessing Community Needs and Resources: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/assessment/assessing-community-ne...
Toolkit 1. Creating and Maintaining Partnerships: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/creating-and-maintaining-partnerships
Toolkit 2. Assessing Community Needs and Resources: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/assessing-community-needs-and-resources
Chapter 18. Deciding Where to Start: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/analyze/where-to-start
Chapter 5. Choosing Strategies to Promote Community Health and Development: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents-community-assessment/choosing-str...
Chapter 17. Analyzing Community Problems and Solutions: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/analyze/analyze-community-problem...
Toolkit 3. Analyzing Problems and Goals: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/analyzing-problems-and-goals
Toolkit 7. Developing an Intervention: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/developing-intervention
Good luck with the project.

Question Date: Mar, 12/29/2015