An evaluation of oral health flip charts in maternal child health clinics in Tanzania

Abstract

Objectives This paper describes a formal evaluation of a project which developed oral health flip charts for use in Maternal Child Health (MCH) clinics in Tanzania. The strengths and limitations of the evaluation are discussed.Methods Relevance, progress and effectiveness of the flip chart project were measured. Relevance was determined using surveys of MCH nurses, expert opinions of Ministry of Health personnel and case studies of mothers attending MCH clinics. Progress was monitored by tracking the number of MCH Aides trained (592) and the number of flip chart sets distributed (330). Effectiveness was measured by assessing the teaching performance of MCH Aides before and after the flip charts. Effectiveness was also measured in a quasi-experimental design which compared teaching activity in two regions with flip charts and two regions without them.Results The evaluation design was successful in measuring the progress of the project, and to some extent, project effectiveness. It was less successful in measuring the relevance of the flip charts to rural mothers and the change in teaching performance of MCH Aides.Conclusions The design and evaluation of appropriate teaching materials is an important component of oral health promotion programmes in developing countries. It is easy to measure indicators such as the number of materials distributed, the number of health workers trained to use them and the number of times materials are used. The challenge is to measure indicators that are more closely related to the desired health outcome of improved oral health habits.