Resource Hub
Why CARE About Impact
Assessing impact is critical to ensure that you are working toward your mission and using your resources effectively. Demonstrating impact is necessary to show funders, partners, and leaders that you are meeting community needs and improving MCH outcomes. Sharing impact is a way to increase trust, support, and opportunities for your organization.
Through these strategies, CBOs can:
- Strengthen Programs - Ongoing data and insights help improve the design, implementation, and effectiveness of programs.
- Secure Funding & Support - Funders, donors, and partners are more likely to provide support when they can see the difference you are making.
- Build Trust & Engagement - Build credibility with community members and encourage their involvement as participants, volunteers, donors, and ambassadors by sharing data and stories about the difference you are making.
- Make the Case for Policy Change - Strong data and stories support policy initiatives to improve MCH outcomes.
Assessing, demonstrating, and sharing impact requires a proactive and strategic approach to evaluation, data collection, and communication. Below are key steps to help your CBO make a bigger difference and meet your mission.
CARE to share tips or examples of how to assess, demonstrate, and/or share impact?
Share Here!Developing a strong evaluation plan at the start of a program helps measure progress, capture successes, and pinpoint areas for improvement.
MCH Library Evaluation Toolkit has an evaluation primer that explains the basics, key resources to help you develop evaluations, and a repository of examples of different types of evaluations that have been conducted to demonstrate MCH outcomes.
Candid Learning Results Special Collection has a compilation of practical how-to information and evaluation examples.
If you are in a rural area, the Rural Health Information Hub has helpful guidance and examples for Conducting Rural Health Research, Needs Assessments, and Program Evaluations. Another useful program evaluation tool, not only for rural areas, is this evaluation guide from the Rural Allied Health Network Training Program.
There are many publicly available MCH data sources that can help you benchmark progress and compare local data to national trends. MCH data can also help you understand the health outcomes in your community and demonstrate the need for funding to improve them.
Key MCH Data Sources:
- Quick Reference Guide for MCH and Social Determinants of Health Data Sources | Citymatch | 2021
- Maternal and Child Health Data and Statistics | MCH Digital Library
- Maternal and Child Health Legislative Database (NCSL)
- Maternal and Infant Health Mapping Tool (HRSA)
- Maternal, Newborn, Child, Adolescent Health (WHO)
- Your local health department: Directory of Local Health Departments - NACCHO
In addition to using publicly available data to assess the health of your community, you will need to collect and analyze data on your programs, services, and communities of focus to demonstrate results from and impact of your work.
This includes:
- Quantitative Data (numbers/statistics) such as birth outcomes, service utilization rates, and program enrollment numbers
- Qualitative Data (stories/experiences) such as feedback, testimonials from program participants, focus group insights, and staff observations
Some resources that can guide you through collecting and analyzing each type of data include:
- Collecting & Analyzing Data
- CDC Brief: Analyzing Qualitative Data for Evaluation
- CDC Brief: Analyzing Quantitative Data for Evaluation
When analyzing data, key questions to try to answer include:
- Are your programs reaching who you intended?
- Are your programs resulting in the outcomes you intended?
- Are there ways to make your program more efficient?
- Are there ways to make your program more impactful?
- Are MCH outcomes improving over time?
- How do your results align with local, state, or national MCH trends?
Once you have data and insights, you can apply them to improve your programs and services. This may include:
- Adjusting services based on participant feedback (for example, offering evening prenatal classes if working mothers struggle to attend daytime sessions).
- Increasing outreach in areas where data shows gaps in MCH service access.
- Training staff and volunteers to use a different outreach approach to improve efficiency or effectiveness.
You should also use the data and insights you gather to enhance your credibility, strengthen community engagement, and increase funding and support.
Start by creating meaningful narratives that combine quantitative data with real life stories to demonstrate your organization's impact.
Learn how to tell a compelling success story through these trainings and examples. If you work in maternal mental health, consider how to share stories in a safe way.
Then, share the data and stories through different formats to reach funders, donors, partners, and community members.
- Annual Reports - Highlight major achievements with data and testimonials.
- Infographics - Use visuals to make key findings easy to understand.
- Social Media- Engage wider audiences through engaging posts, and make sure they are accessible.
- Community Presentations - Share data at local events, coalition meetings, or advocacy gatherings.
- Op Eds - Showcase your impact in local media to raise the visibility of your work and your organization.
- Conference Presentations - Submit abstracts to share your successes at local, regional, state, and national conferences (e.g. the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs) to increase visibility as a trusted, impactful organization.