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Project Title:
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Review of NIOSH Research Programs
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PIN:
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DELS-O-04-01-A
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Major Unit:
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Institute of Medicine
Division on Earth and Life Studies
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Sub Unit:
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Board on Health Sciences Policy
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RSO:
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Liverman, Cathy
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Subject/Focus Area:
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Agriculture; Behavioral and Social Sciences; Biology and Life Sciences; Business; Economics; Engineering and Technology; Environment and Environmental Studies; Health and Medicine; Policy for Science and Technology; Transportation and Infrastructure
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Project Scope
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In response to a request from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the Division of Earth and Life Studies (DELS) of the National Academies (NA) are conducting a series of evaluations of NIOSH research programs. Each evaluation will be conducted by an ad hoc committee, using a methodology and framework developed by the Committee to Review NIOSH Research Programs (framework committee).
Each evaluation committee will review the program's impact, relevance, and future directions. The evaluation committee will evaluate not only what the NIOSH research program is producing, but will also determine whether it is appropriate to credit NIOSH research with changes in workplace practices, hazardous exposures, and/or occupational illnesses and injuries, or whether the changes are the result of other factors unrelated to NIOSH.
The program reviews should focus on evaluating the program's impact and relevance to health and safety issues in the workplace and make recommendations for improvement. In conducting the review, the evaluation committee will address the following elements:
1. Assessment of the program's contribution through occupational safety and health research to reductions in workplace hazardous exposures, illnesses, or injuries through:
a. an assessment of the relevance of the program's activities to the improvement of occupational safety and health, and
b. an evaluation of the impact that the program's research has had in reducing work-related hazardous exposures, illnesses, and injuries.
The evaluation committee will rate the performance of the program for its relevance and impact using an integer score of 1 to 5. Impact may be assessed directly (e.g., reductions in illnesses or injuries) or, as necessary, using intermediate outcomes to estimate impact. Qualitative narrative evaluations should be included to explain the numerical ratings.
2. Assessment of the program's effectiveness in targeting new research areas and identifying emerging issues in occupational safety and health most relevant to future improvements in workplace protection. The committee will provide a qualitative narrative assessment of the program's efforts and suggestions about emerging issues that the program should be prepared to address.
In 2008, NIOSH requested that the Committee on the Review of NIOSH Research Programs prepare a brief report to document the lessons learned in this evaluation effort and set forth the process that it recommends be used for future evaluations of occupational health and safety research programs. The report will build on the latest version of the framework used to guide the work of the eight evaluation committees completed to date, and may revise the framework as necessary based on lessons learned about the evaluation process during these reviews. The committee will draw on the evaluation literature to provide additional context for the report. Recommendations for future program evaluations or more generalizable guiding principles for these types of efforts may be provided. Input for this report will involve discussions with NIOSH staff and with chairs and committee members of the evaluation committees.
The sponsor for this study is NIOSH. The starting date was 09/13/2004. The framework/oversight committee will produce a summary report at the completion of the project (approximately 60 months).
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Project Duration:
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60 months
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