Data Collection Begins for Multi-Site Implementation Evaluation of Tribal Home Visiting
A 5-year study of home visiting in tribal communities reached a major milestone earlier this month when it launched data collection among participating programs. Seventeen tribal organizations have signed onto the Multi-Site Implementation Evaluation of Tribal Home Visiting (MUSE) project awarded to JBA in 2016. MUSE focuses on the implementation of efforts supported by the Tribal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program and will explore how program planning and implementation relate to quality of services and proximal outcomes.
In addition to program-level data collection and staff surveys, tribal program staff will collect data from families in the field using iPads provided by the MUSE study team. Home visiting staff and families receiving services can securely enter information directly into software loaded onto the iPads, even if they do not have an Internet connection.
MUSE’s data collection phase follows 2-plus years of stakeholder engagement to design relevant data collection instruments that respect local and tribal practices and culture. The study design has been approved by participating organizations and their respective tribal leadership, organizational leadership, and/or research review bodies. MUSE also received approval from the federal Office of Management and Budget and the Colorado Multiple Institutional Review Board.
“From the beginning, MUSE has worked to develop meaningful collaborations with programs and communities. Our partners helped to develop the study and will continue to shape what we learn and share throughout the course of MUSE data collection and dissemination,” said Project Director Kate Lyon. “We are excited to see what we learn from data collection activities shaped by participants’ distinct experiences and contexts.”
MUSE is a project of the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation in the Administration for Children and Families. JBA conducts the project in partnership with the Centers for American Indian and Alaska Native Health at the University of Colorado.