Enhancing Impact: Information Technology for Health

April 2006

Structure of the presentation

Virtual Programs 1. Virtual and Blended

Learning Programs 2. Virtual Networks 3. Virtual Conferences

How to determine your virtual program learning needs

Virtual learning program: Virtual Leadership Development Program (VLDP)

13-week, 7 module blended learning program

Face-to-face team work combined with virtual learning and exchange

• Enroll teams, rather than individuals

• Individual work in their work environment through VLDP Web site with workbook back-up

• Active virtual facilitation

• Post-program follow up in LeaderNet

Characteristics of the VLDP

Virtual learning programs: USAID e-learning Modules

Internal professional development learning site for US- and mission-based staff

Extensive content management and learning evaluation systems

Virtual learning programs: The Provider’s Guide

Multimedia-rich seminar for health providers in the US

Being adapted for use in other countries

Virtual Network: LeaderNet

A network for graduates from our face-to-face and blended learning programs

560 members from 33 countries communicating in four languages

Virtual Network: Global Exchange Network for Reproductive Health

• USAID “graduated” countries (GCs): no longer receive Population and RH funding. Requested a mechanism for exchange among these countries.

• A virtual network of reproductive health decision makers, policy makers and service providers.

• Designed to promote communication and exchange on proven practices, ideas, results and challenges facing them.

• Conducted with partners in Graduated countries, for other GCs and also non GCs.

Virtual Conferences

Global Exchange Network: Two virtual conferences on RH/FP topics, one hosted by Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico; the other hosted by Morocco. Each conference was held on a platform created by iCohere:

http://www.icohere.com/

What is a virtual conference?

A virtual conference offers everything a face-to-face conference can, including the opportunity for:

• Audio and visual presentations • Conversations and exchanges spanning several

locations, time zones, and times of day• Posing questions to the presenters and other

participants• Real-time chat options• Posting resources, announcements, internet links, and

biographical information (including photos)

Conference demonstration

Virtual Conference Results

• 165 people from 16 LAC countries participated in 3-day virtual conference on adolescent RH, in addition to people from US, Spain, Morocco, and Sweden

• 98 people from Morocco, eight other francophone African countries, Switzerland and the US participated in 3-day conference on Safe Motherhood

“I am located at a training site situatedvery far from the university and veryfar from the cities where conferences are generally held. But, even if I workedall day, I had the opportunity to review all of the presentations.”

– Virtual conference participant

“The concept of a virtual conference permits us to avoid the difficulties linked to finding the funds for traveling and other charges linked to participating in a conference.”

– Virtual conference participant

Virtual Conference Results

Virtual Conference Preparations

We started preparations foreach conference 3-4 months before the conference.

Level of Effort

Staff:• One project manager, one electronic products

specialist, and one administrative support staff person made up the core team.

• All of the presenters volunteered their time.

• We worked closely with the staff at iCohere (included in our contract with them)

• iCohere was easy to work with.

Level of Effort

Special considerations:Both of our virtual conferences were in foreign

languages, which added complexities, time, and costs.

We worked with several partners for each conference, liaised between partners, and coordinated the presentation preparations and recordings.

iCohere normally configures the conference Web site as part of their services, but for our conferences, we did this configuration.

Level of technology necessary

Level of technology necessary is relatively low.

The necessities:• Access to the Internet and have very minimal

Internet and computer skills

• Ability to understand the instructions for disabling a pop-up blocker

• Openness to using and exploring new technologies

Virtual Conference Lessons

• Virtual conferences really work for sharing ideas, proven practices, successes, and challenges among people who might otherwise never communicate.

• Inexpensive way to plan and conduct a conference involving so many people (no

travel necessary)

• Virtual conferences are possible in a variety of countries and settings, including most of the developing world.

How to determine your virtual program learning needs

1. What is your objective? What is the problem you are trying to solve?

2. Who is your intended audience?

3. What is the context of that audience?

4. Will the program be on-going or a one-time event?

5. What sort of staff support do you have for the program?

Any questions?

Thank you

Closing the gap between

what is known about public health problems

and what is done

to solve them