Open AccessIntegrating Public Health Policy, Practice, Evaluation, Surveillance, and Research: The School Health Action Planning and Evaluation System
Author(s) -
Roy Cameron,
Steve Manske,
Karen Brown,
Mari Alice Jolin,
Donna Murnaghan,
Chris Y. Lovato
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2005.079665
Subject(s) - public health , action (physics) , environmental health , school health , health policy , political science , public health surveillance , medicine , public relations , medical education , nursing , physics , quantum mechanics
The Canadian Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute of Canada have charged their Centre for Behavioral Research and Program Evaluation with contributing to the development of the country's systemic capacity to link research, policy, and practice related to population-level interventions. Local data collection and feedback systems are integral to this capacity. Canada's School Health Action Planning and Evaluation System (SHAPES) allows data to be collected from all of a school's students, and these data are used to produce computer-generated school "health profiles." SHAPES is being used for intervention planning, evaluation, surveillance, and research across Canada. Strong demand and multipartner investment suggest that SHAPES is adding value in all of these domains. Such systems can contribute substantially to evidence-informed public health practice, public engagement, participatory action research, and relevant, timely population intervention research.