Selecting a Program Evaluation Focus Area Using NTIP

The indicator summary report provides information about your jurisdiction's progress in meeting each National Performance Target.

• Review the trends for your program indicators to determine if performance is improving, staying the same, or getting worse.
• Identify specific indicators your program could improve.

Generate the indicator reports in NTIP to dive deeper into your jurisdiction's performance on the identified indicators. Reviewing NTIP reports can reveal specific areas for further investigation.

NTIP indicator reports include SMART objectives that directly relate to the National TB Program Objectives and Performance Targets. NTIP reports also provide the indicator's definition, data sources, and calculations.

• The table beneath the graph in each NTIP indicator report tells you the number of cases that were used in the numerator and denominator for calculating the percentage associated with each indicator.
• NTIP reports provide details about your jurisdiction's performance over the last five years, including summary tables of your jurisdiction's:
  • Cases for each objective's cohort
  • Cases that met the objective

The NTIP line list tells you the cases and specific variables for each case that were used in the indicator report (if line list data for the identified indicator is available). With the NTIP line list, you can:

• Review which patients were part of the indicator cohort for your specific indicator of interest.
• Determine exactly why patients who were part of the eligible indicator cohort did not meet the objective.
• Compare to your jurisdiction's data to reveal potential issues with data collection or submission.

The State and City Report shows selected indicator performance across 50 states and 9 cities.

• Identify other similarly sized jurisdictions and compare their indicator performance with your jurisdiction.
• Consider contacting them to discuss their approaches to improving indicator performance.

• Review the available information in NTIP and your jurisdiction with program evaluation staff, leaders, and other staff as needed. Then, prioritize the evaluation focus area(s).
  • Narrow down potential focus areas after reviewing the NTIP indicator summary report and specific indicator reports (steps 1 and 2).
  • Look closely into the details of the data using the NTIP line list (step 3). Determine if specific cases truly did not meet the objectives or if performance is lacking due to errors in the data.
  • Review the State and City TB Report (step 4). Identify other jurisdictions with similar case counts as your jurisdiction to determine if the objective is achievable. Contact and consult similar jurisdictions as you develop your evaluation plan.
    

Focus your evaluation using a method that is informative and considerate of your program's processes, priorities, and capacity. Developing an evaluation plan that addresses your program’s current needs will help build support to effectively implement the evaluation activities.

Use evaluation findings to understand your program’s current performance The findings can inform a remediation or action plan to improve your program's performance in this area.