The Los Angeles Coordinated HIV Needs Assessment

About the Program

Category: Health (Best in Category)

Year: 2009

HIV assessment and evaluation data have, in the past, largely been collected and has attributed to increased accuracy and efficiency, as well as greatly reducing the cost of data collection. In 2007, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Office of AIDS Programs and Policy implemented a new technology in the administration of a County-wide HIV services needs assessment locally known as the Los Angeles Coordinated HIV Needs Assessment (LACHNA). The surveys were developed for hand-held electronic devices including PDAs and smartphones, to minimize data collection error and eliminate data entry. In 2007, 2,109 surveys were administered using the new technology to a diverse population in a variety of settings. Compared to previous paper-based surveys, LACHNA yielded vast improvements in accuracy, efficiency, cost, and security. Eliminating data entry saved hundreds of staff hours reducing costs by more than 32%. Programmed skip patterns and built-in data validation greatly increased accuracy and efficiency, while the small size of the data collection devices allowed data collectors to conduct survey is non-traditional settings and reduced refusal rates among hard-to-reach populations.