| Literature DB >> 35457369 |
Janelle Gore1, Jamilla Toliver1, Miranda A Moore2, Dawn Aycock3, Fayron Epps1.
Abstract
Black churches have traditionally been a haven for Black American families; however, many churches do not currently have programs to support families living with dementia. Alter™ was established to assist faith communities in meeting the needs of these families and becoming a viable resource to promote their health and wellness. Alter™ achieves this aim through a three-pronged approach: (1) conducting educational sessions, (2) modifying Black churches to be dementia-inclusive spaces, and (3) providing ongoing support. The principal goal of Alter™ is to offer guidance to churches in adapting their community to reflect a supportive environment for families affected by dementia. Alter™ uses a partnership checklist to encourage activities that incorporate dementia education opportunities, environmental modifications, and dementia resources and support. This paper reports on a formative mixed-methods evaluation of church partners enrolled in Alter™. Church partner ambassadors within the faith communities participated in the evaluation survey (n = 8) and two focus groups (n = 11). Ambassadors are appointed by church leadership to lead the implementation of program activities. Data were collected concerning the levels of helpfulness, difficulty, usefulness, or utility of checklist activities and modifications and the ease of program implementation. The evaluation also assessed the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on each church's ability to implement activities and modifications. The survey results revealed that most required partnership activities and modifications were found to be at least moderately helpful. Some of the items (themes) that differed across church partners included barriers to implementing activities, the support provided and needed, and the use of program funding. This evaluation provides key insights to consider in developing and refining community-based, dementia-friendly communities (including faith communities). As implementation science expands and improves, the need to evaluate the implementation of programs continues to be highlighted. Our formative evaluation shed light on key areas in which modifications to our original programming would lead to program improvement and sustainability. Additionally, implementing the modifications identified in our evaluation will facilitate the achievement of the mission of Alter™ to improve the well-being of older adults affected by dementia and their families. Other programs would reap substantial benefits from engaging in similar formative evaluation efforts.Entities:
Keywords: African American; Black church; dementia; formative program evaluation
Mesh：
Year: 2022 PMID： 35457369 PMCID： PMC9028238 DOI： 10.3390/ijerph19084498
Source DB: PubMed Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health ISSN： 1660-4601 Impact factor: 4.614
Data collection cross-walk.
| Evaluation Question | Domain Assessed |
|---|---|
| Focus group data about support from staff and the overall percentages of the activities and modifications | |
| Percentage of activities identified as helpful to church and congregation members | |
| Percentage of activities identified as difficult to implement for the church | |
| Percentage of activities identified as being used and how often they were used | |
| Content analysis of survey short answer |
Core partnership activities.
| Evaluation Survey Components | Assign to a Ministry | Building Is Well-Lit | Large Print Signage | Badges for Support Staff | Physical Support | Quiet Room/Space | Accessible Pathways | Church Leaders Workshop |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||||
| Not Selected | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Selected to Implement and NOT Implemented | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 3 | |
| Selected to Implement and Implemented | 8 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
|
| ||||||||
| Completely helpful | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Very helpful | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Moderately helpful | 2 | -- | -- | -- | 1 | -- | -- | -- |
| Slightly helpful | -- | -- | 2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Not helpful at all | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
|
| ||||||||
| Not Difficult at All | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 4 |
| Slightly Difficult | -- | -- | -- | 1 | -- | -- | -- | |
| Moderately Difficult | 1 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Very Difficult | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Extremely Difficult (not able to implement) | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
|
| ||||||||
| Extensively Utilizing | 1 | -- | -- | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Utilizing | 3 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 3 |
| Moderately Utilizing | 1 | -- | -- | -- | 1 | 1 | -- | -- |
| Somewhat Utilizing | 3 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | -- |
| Not Utilizing | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | 1 | 3 | -- |
Support resources for families affected by dementia frequencies table.
| Evaluation Survey | Memory Café | Support Group | Resource Library | Respite Care | Educational Events | Social Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||
| Not Selected to Implement | 3 | 4 | 1 | 6 | -- | 5 |
| Selected to Implement and NOT Implemented | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| Selected to Implement and Implemented | -- | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
|
| ||||||
| Completely helpful | -- | -- | 3 | -- | 1 | -- |
| Very helpful | -- | 1 | -- | -- | 3 | 1 |
| Moderately helpful | -- | 1 | 1 | -- | -- | |
| Slightly helpful | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
| Not helpful at all | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
|
| ||||||
| Not Difficult at All | -- | 2 | 4 | 1 | 3 | -- |
| Slightly Difficult | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 |
| Moderately Difficult | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | -- |
| Very Difficult | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Extremely Difficult | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
|
| ||||||
| Extensively Utilizing | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | -- |
| Utilizing | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Moderately Utilizing | -- | -- | 3 | -- | 1 | 1 |
| Somewhat Utilizing | -- | 1 | 1 | -- | 2 | -- |
| Not Utilizing | -- | 1 | -- | 1 | -- | -- |
Community dementia education and awareness activities frequencies table.
| Evaluation Survey Components | Memory Sunday | Dementia Education with Youth | Dementia Resources and Education on Social | Virtual Dementia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||
| Not Selected to Implement | 2 | 4 | 1 | 6 |
| Selected to Implement and NOT | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| Selected to Implement and Implemented | 4 | 1 | 6 | -- |
|
| ||||
| Completely helpful | 2 | -- | 3 | -- |
| Very helpful | 1 | -- | 2 | -- |
| Moderately helpful | 1 | -- | -- | -- |
| Slightly helpful | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Not helpful at all | -- | 1 | 1 | -- |
|
| ||||
| Not Difficult at All | 4 | -- | 4 | -- |
| Slightly Difficult | -- | -- | 1 | -- |
| Moderately Difficult | -- | 1 | 1 | -- |
| Very Difficult | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Extremely Difficult (not able to | -- | -- | -- | -- |
|
| ||||
| Extensively Utilizing | -- | -- | 3 | -- |
| Utilizing | 1 | -- | 1 | -- |
| Moderately Utilizing | 1 | 1 | 1 | -- |
| Somewhat Utilizing | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Not Utilizing | 1 | -- | 1 | -- |
Modified worship service activities frequencies table.
| Evaluation Survey | Shorten Service Length to 75 min. or Less | Simplify Sermons | Include Familiar | Support Staff Present | Increase Amount of | Modify |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||
| Not Selected to Implement | -- | 1 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 3 |
| Selected to Implement and NOT Implemented | -- | 1 | -- | 1 | -- | -- |
| Selected to Implement and Implemented | 8 | 6 | 3 | -- | 5 | 5 |
|
| ||||||
| Completely helpful | 4 | 3 | 2 | -- | 3 | 4 |
| Very helpful | 1 | 2 | 1 | -- | 2 | 1 |
| Moderately helpful | 1 | 1 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Slightly helpful | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Not helpful at all | ||||||
|
| ||||||
| Not Difficult at All | 4 | 6 | 3 | -- | 4 | 3 |
| Slightly Difficult | 2 | -- | -- | -- | 1 | 1 |
| Moderately Difficult | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Very Difficult | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Extremely Difficult (not able to implement) | ||||||
|
| ||||||
| Extensively Utilizing | 6 | 4 | 3 | -- | 3 | 5 |
| Utilizing | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Moderately Utilizing | -- | 1 | -- | -- | 2 | -- |
| Somewhat Utilizing | -- | 1 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Not Utilizing | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |