Evaluation of the Rapid Results Approach to improve childhood nutrition in Nepal

Last registered on October 06, 2023

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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title

Evaluation of the Rapid Results Approach to improve childhood nutrition in Nepal

RCT ID

AEARCTR-0011823

Initial registration date

July 21, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published

July 28, 2023, 10:56 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated

October 06, 2023, 12:15 PM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country

Nepal

Region

Primary Investigator

Name

Marcos Vera-Hernandez

Affiliation

University College London

Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name

Daniel Stein

PI Affiliation

Development Impact Evaluation Initiative, World Bank

Contact Investigator

PI Name

Emla Fitzsimons

PI Affiliation

UCL

Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status

Completed

Start date

2013-08-30

End date

2017-12-31

Keywords

Behavior, Health

Additional Keywords

Lab-in-the-field experiments, Self-reported measures, Social networks, Social capital

JEL code(s)

C93, C83, H41

Secondary IDs

ISRCTN75175305

Prior work

This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.

Abstract

Background and study aims
This study will assess the impact of Sunaula Hazar Din (SHD), a program implemented by the Government of Nepal. SHD uses the Rapid Results Approach (RRA) to improve nutritional indicators of pregnant women and children 0 to 24 months old, as well as family planning of women aged 15-25 years old. The evaluation will measure its effect on nutritional attitudes and outcomes. RRA is a results-focused learning process aimed at jump-starting major change efforts and enhancing implementation capacity. The approach creates motivation and confidence by defining goals and monitoring results in short periods (usually 100 days) and mobilizing communities to act and coordinate.

What does the study involve?
SHD will be implemented in randomly selected Village Development Committees. Community members can voluntarily participate in the activities organized by SHD in their Village Development Committee. Interviews and anthropometric measurements (such as height and weight) of children will be carried out at the start of the study and 24 months later to find out the impact of SHD on family planning and nutritional indicators.

Where is the study run from?
The study is run from Village Development Committees across 15 districts of Nepal.

External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation

Fitzsimons, Emla, Daniel Stein and Marcos Vera-Hernandez. 2023. "Evaluation of the Rapid Results Approach to improve childhood nutrition in Nepal." AEA RCT Registry. October 06. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.11823-2.0

Sponsors & Partners

Interventions

Intervention(s)

The Rapid Results Approach (RRA) will be implemented in randomly selected Village Development Committees. The RRA is a results-focused learning process aimed at jump-starting major change efforts and enhancing implementation capacity. It tackles large-scale medium and long term change efforts through a series of small-scale, results-producing and momentum-building initiatives. The approach creates motivation and confidence by defining goals and monitoring results in short periods (usually 100 days) and mobilizing communities to act and coordinate.
The control group are individuals living in randomly selected Village Development Committees which will not benefit from SHD for a two year period

Intervention Start Date

2014-02-01

Intervention End Date

2015-12-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)

1.Height for age z-score for children 0-24 months
2. Percentage of children between 0-24 months that suffered from diarrhoea in the 15 days prior to the interview.

Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

1. Number of instances in which a mother (of children 0-24 months) reports to clean her hands with soap at critical times
2. Percentage of households that report to have human feces in the house, compound, or right outside the compound
3. Percentage of households that report to have animal feces in the house, compound, or right outside the compound
4. Percentage of households using safe sources of water
5. Percentage of children 6-24 months whose mother reported to consume a minimum acceptable diet on the day prior to the interview
6. Percentage of children 6-24 months whose mother reported to consume an animal sourced protein on the day prior to the interview
7. Percentage of pregnant women who report consuming an animal sourced protein on the day prior to the interview
8. Social capital
9. A composite index comprising outcomes related to the goals of SHD

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Social capital is captured using survey questions and lab-in-the-field experiments

Experimental Design

Cluster randomised trial

Experimental Design Details

Randomization Method

Computer

Randomization Unit

Village Development Committees (VDCs)

Was the treatment clustered?

Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters

141 early starters (treatment), 141 late starters (control)

Sample size: planned number of observations

5640 households

Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms

2820 households

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)

Supporting Documents and Materials

IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name

Nepal Health Research Council

IRB Approval Date

2017-07-21

IRB Approval Number

79/2013

IRB Name

UCL Research Ethics Committee

IRB Approval Date

2013-08-14

IRB Approval Number

Protocol ID 1827/005

Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?

Data Collection Complete

Yes

Data Collection Completion Date

Final Sample Size: Number of Clusters (Unit of Randomization)

282 Village Development Committees

Was attrition correlated with treatment status?

Final Sample Size: Total Number of Observations

Final Sample Size (or Number of Clusters) by Treatment Arms

141 Village Development Committees early starters, 141 Village Development Committees late starters

Data Publication

Is public data available?

Program Files

Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials

Description

Basic Results

Citation

File

Trial_registry_report.pdf

MD5:

SHA1:

Uploaded At: October 06, 2023