The Right-Fit Evidence group provides good resources related to this post. They publish guidance on what types of evidence implementers should collect to demonstrate and monitor the impact of their programs.
Notably, different types of evidence are ideal depending on the stage of a program. In the beginning, when there is lots of uncertainty about an intervention, a randomized controlled trial is great. At a later stage, when the program is scaling to many recipients, it is more important to monitor the program and ensure that the implementation is done well.
In the case of SMC, millions of children receive treatments. A wealth of monitoring data is collected, much more than could be obtained in an RCT. Even though that data isn’t randomized or controlled, its quantity might make up for these deficits and allow us to determine whether SMC works with sufficient confidence.
The Right-Fit Evidence group provides good resources related to this post. They publish guidance on what types of evidence implementers should collect to demonstrate and monitor the impact of their programs.
Notably, different types of evidence are ideal depending on the stage of a program. In the beginning, when there is lots of uncertainty about an intervention, a randomized controlled trial is great. At a later stage, when the program is scaling to many recipients, it is more important to monitor the program and ensure that the implementation is done well.
In the case of SMC, millions of children receive treatments. A wealth of monitoring data is collected, much more than could be obtained in an RCT. Even though that data isn’t randomized or controlled, its quantity might make up for these deficits and allow us to determine whether SMC works with sufficient confidence.
More information can be downloaded on the Right-Fit Evidence website. And here’s an introduction to their framework.
Thanks, this is very useful and new to me! (I briefly consulted/worked for IPA in 2015-2016.)