K4Health Year 4 Mid Year Review Progress Report

The project has demonstrated leadership in knowledge management and exchange to advance the practice of international public health. K4Health has continued to produce high-quality work and evolved further by spearheading innovative strategies for disseminating information to and exchanging knowledge with its target audiences. The project has produced numerous products and services during Year 4, including eight new eToolkits and five new eLearning courses that focus primarily on family planning/reproductive health technical priority areas. In November 2011, the project launched the Application for Contraceptive Eligibility (ACE), a mobile application for Android OS based on Family Planning: A Global Handbook for Providers. K4Health also published an upgraded, collaborative, and redesigned blog on its website featuring regular and guest commentators, and it finalized a guide for conducting health information needs assessments. K4Health has advanced its field-support effort on different fronts, including launching SHARE (Southern Africa HIV/AIDS Regional Exchange) and starting the KM support project in Bangladesh. The project has also continued to respond to the health information needs of its key audiences through appropriate technology and delivery vehicles. Findings from needs assessments, routine monitoring data, and user surveys were incorporated into the work of the project to improve products and services. The project has made excellent progress toward meeting annual targets, and in some areas, it will exceed established goals. The mid-year review has been a valuable exercise for the K4Health team, and the review findings and lessons learned will inform the development of the Year 5 work plan. The Knowledge Management Working Group (KM WG) has been a key component of the project's success. The group has demonstrated leadership in knowledge management by serving as the organizational chair for the KM WG. The group has hosted meetings, launched new task teams, and supported the development of a KM strategy. The KM WG has also launched the KM for Health and Development Toolkit, which provides vetted KM resources from a variety of international public health and development organizations. The project has also made significant progress in promoting and disseminating knowledge. The project has launched the SHARE portal, the upgraded K4Health Blog, Photoshare, and Knowledge Gateway sites. The project has also published an upgraded, collaborative, and redesigned blog on its website featuring regular and guest commentators. The project has also planned and held dissemination workshops in Peru and Senegal, and posted final needs assessment reports for Peru and Senegal on K4Health.org. The project has also made significant progress in monitoring and evaluation. The project has collected data on progress toward Year 4 targets among applicable indicators, and has assessed achievement toward Year 4 targets. The project has also used data from needs assessments, routine monitoring data, and user surveys to improve products and services. The project has identified specific issues and findings that will inform the Year 5 work plan proposal. The project has also planned and held a webinar for the KM WG, and has presented needs assessment results from India, Senegal, and Malawi during a panel at the 2011 International Conference on Family Planning in Dakar, Senegal. The project has also completed the K4Health Guide for Conducting Health Information Needs Assessments, posted it on K4Health.org, and announced the publication on relevant listservs. The project has also planned and held dissemination workshops in Peru and Senegal, and posted final needs assessment reports for Peru and Senegal on K4Health.org. The project has also produced a report of the Ethiopia needs assessment/Net-Map results and sent it to USAID/Ethiopia for comments. Abstracts have been accepted by the 13th World Congress on Public Health in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and by the 5th Annual NIH Conference on the Science of Dissemination and Implementation in Bethesda, MD. The project has also coordinated a Journal of Health Communication supplement on "Meeting the Information Needs of Health Care Providers, Program Managers, and Policy Makers in Low- and Middle-Income Countries." The project has worked with co-editors to write an introduction, submit research articles, and coordinate submission of commentary pieces representing donor, librarian, and health care provider perspectives. The project has also begun setting foundations for the new Global Health: Science and Practice journal, including soliciting candidates for a new Managing Editor position, suggesting Editorial Board candidates, developing an informational fact sheet for the journal, setting up new journal email accounts, creating the peer-review policy, and drafting a proposal for the journal publisher.