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Samantha Togni (S2 Consulting), Deborah Askew (Inala Indigenous Health Service, Queensland Health), Lynne Rogers (Inala Indigenous Health Service, Queensland Health, ),Sonya Egert (Inala Indigenous Health Service, Queensland Health), Elizabeth Darlington (Inala Indigenous Health Service, Queensland Health), Audrey Burgin (Inala Indigenous Health Service, Queensland Health), Nicola Potter (Queensland Health )

Over three years we employed developmental evaluation in the complex landscape of an exploratory study to develop an innovative model of care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples with complex chronic disease. We will explore how the developmental evaluation approach engaged, challenged and developed capacity in the study team members.

The developmental evaluation landscape is distinct from other evaluation landscapes. Developmental evaluation supports innovation in complex and dynamic contexts where a program or service is emerging. In these contexts, people, relationships and collaboration are central to innovation. It is 'in relationship' that change and development happen. However change, even positive change, can be unsettling, creating uncertainty within the innovation's people landscape. Drawing on complexity and systems thinking, developmental evaluation enables a focus on people and relationships development and strategies for navigating this uncertainty.

Considerable personal and professional growth and capacity development in our study team has been achieved through our developmental evaluation's focus on people, relationships and teamwork. Reflective practice workshops facilitated by the evaluator and adaptive to where people are at, have been central to this outcome, creating a safe place for personal and professional development and learning including increased self-awareness and reflective abilities. Focus on the development of people and relationships subsequently has strengthened the model of care's development and implementation, particularly through people's increased ability to inhabit their roles and an awareness of inter-relatedness. This approach has challenged people. It requires more of people than other evaluation approaches.

Developmental evaluation can support the capacity development of people and effective innovation development. This is significant as people take this capacity and learning into new roles and innovations. To achieve this, the evaluator needs high level skills in managing complex relationships and belief in the capacity of people.