National Evaluation of Quality of Childcare (ENCCI)

National Evaluation of Quality of Childcare (ENCCI)

This evaluation seeks to assess the impact of a training program on childcare center environments and child/caregiver wellbeing in El Salvador. Through a longitudinal, randomized control trial, over 200 childcare centers participating in the program will be assigned to various treatment arms receiving different components of the program. A community comparison cohort will also be enrolled.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Mental Health Wellness 1; Health Behavior; Child Rearing
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Promotores Training; Behavioral: Caregiver training; Behavioral: Materials support; Behavioral: Technical assistance; Behavioral: Delayed caregiver training; Behavioral: Delayed materials support; Behavioral: Delayed technical assistance; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training

Detailed Description

Whole Child International (WCI) is a U.S.-based non-governmental organization. Its focus is on improving the caregiving environments for vulnerable children by effecting changes within child care centers and orphanages.

This evaluation will assess the impact of an educational training and technical assistance program offered by WCI in collaboration with the El Salvadoran government. The program consists of a series of educational trainings (for local government officials, directors of childcare and residential centers, and center caregivers) and technical assistance including infrastructural changes within centers.

To evaluate this intervention, a longitudinal, randomized controlled trial will be used to assign participating centers to one of seven treatment arms that will receive different components of the intervention. A community comparison cohort will also be enrolled to identify selection effects as well as local norms and standards. The central research question is, "Does providing training for institution providers and caregivers improve child outcomes?"

Ethnographic research will also explore local cultural norms regarding child caregiving, and seek to understand how the intervention is received within communities.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 1923
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• El Salvador
  • San Salvador, El Salvador
    • Whole Child International

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 6 months to 4 years (Child)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Children between the ages of 6 months-4 years old at baseline, who are currently attending government-run childcare centers in El Salvador, will be eligible for enrollment in this study. One parent/guardian and center caregiver for an enrolled child will also complete assessments.
• In the comparison group, for every 5th center-attending child enrolled, the nearest neighboring child between the ages of 6 months and 4 years at enrollment, and who does not attend the center, will be eligible for enrollment. One parent/guardian of the comparison child will also complete assessments.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Children with known disabilities, who are unlikely to show developmental changes over time, may be excluded from the study.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Crossover Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

10

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: pctm; Receives the earliest Promotores training, followed by direct caregiver training, materials support, and technical assistance.	Behavioral: Promotores Training; Behavioral: Caregiver training; Behavioral: Materials support; Behavioral: Technical assistance
Experimental: p_ctm; Receives the earliest Promotores training, followed by delayed caregiver training, delayed materials support, and delayed technical assistance.	Behavioral: Promotores Training; Behavioral: Delayed caregiver training; Behavioral: Delayed materials support; Behavioral: Delayed technical assistance
Experimental: _pmt; Receives the delayed Promotores training, followed by receipt of materials support and technical assistance.	Behavioral: Materials support; Behavioral: Technical assistance; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training
Experimental: _p_mt; Receives the delayed Promotores training, followed by delayed receipt of materials support and technical assistance.	Behavioral: Delayed materials support; Behavioral: Delayed technical assistance; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training
Experimental: _pct; Receives the delayed Promotores training, followed by caregiver training and technical assistance.	Behavioral: Caregiver training; Behavioral: Technical assistance; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training
Experimental: _p_ct; Receives the delayed Promotores training, followed by delayed caregiver training and technical assistance.	Behavioral: Delayed caregiver training; Behavioral: Delayed technical assistance; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training
Experimental: _pt; Receives the delayed Promotores training, followed by technical assistance.	Behavioral: Technical assistance; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training
Experimental: _p_t; Receives the delayed Promotores training, followed by delayed technical assistance.	Behavioral: Delayed technical assistance; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training
Experimental: _pc; Receives the delayed Promotores training, followed by a full caregiver training only.	Behavioral: Caregiver training; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training
Experimental: _p_c; Receives the delayed Promotores training, followed by delayed caregiver training.	Behavioral: Delayed caregiver training; Behavioral: Delayed Promotores training

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Children's developmental milestone achievement as measured by the Battelle Developmental Inventory, Second Edition (BDI-2).	The BDI-2 Developmental Quotient has a mean of 100, standard deviation of 15, score range 40-160.	Four years

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Duke University
• Collaborators: University of Pittsburgh; University of South Carolina; Whole Child International
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jan Ostermann, PhD, Associate Research Professor; Principal Investigator: Kathryn Whetten, PhD, Professor

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): March 1, 2015
• Primary Completion (Actual): June 30, 2016
• Study Completion (Actual): June 30, 2016

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 21, 2015
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 25, 2015
• First Posted (Estimate): August 27, 2015

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): April 6, 2021
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 5, 2021
• Last Verified: April 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: C0682