Final Evaluation of the DISTINCT Project — Strengthening the Service and Therapy Network for Children with Disabilities

Project Overview

• Field: Research, Evaluation & Technical Assistance
• Evaluation period: 06 – 08/2022
• Funder: USAID, through VietHealth
• Evaluating agency: Center for Environmental and Health Studies (CEHS)
• Location: Tây Ninh, Đồng Nai, Bình Phước; surveys in 30 communes across 6 districts

Introduction

The final evaluation examined the extent to which objectives were achieved, implementation effectiveness, sustainability and scalability of the DISTINCT project. The evaluation also analyzed the changes the project brought about for children with disabilities, their families, and the local service delivery system.

DISTINCT focused on an early detection–early intervention model for children with disabilities aged 0–6, through community-based screening, assessment and diagnosis, rehabilitation intervention, special education, parent counseling, and capacity building for local staff.

CEHS's Role

CEHS directly conducted the final evaluation, responsible for developing the evaluation protocol and toolkit, organizing data collection, processing and analyzing information, and developing the results report. CEHS also worked with VietHealth and relevant agencies to gather evidence at multiple levels, from central to local.

Key Activities

• Reviewing project documents, reports and databases.
• Conducting a cross-sectional evaluation combining quantitative and qualitative methods.
• Surveying 30 communes across 6 districts in 3 project provinces.
• Conducting 345 quantitative interviews, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and case studies.
• Analyzing results, lessons learned, sustainability and scalability of the model, and writing the evaluation report.

Key Results

• Completed a comprehensive final evaluation of the DISTINCT project's progress, results, effectiveness and sustainability.
• Many project indicators met or exceeded targets; by 30 June 2022, 209,855 children had been screened, 13,213 identified as presumptive cases, 9,183 assessed, and 3,110 children with disabilities received intervention.
• The project helped improve service access, build the capacity of parents and local staff, and reduce the care burden on families.
• The evaluation results provide a basis for sustaining, scaling up and integrating the early detection–early intervention model into the local service system.