Abstract
This paper presents eLearning as a solution for strengthening human resources for health as well as organizational capacity of regional and local nongovernmental organizations in developing countries. Building the knowledge base and increasing opportunities for continuous learning are crucial ways to strengthen the workforce and health systems in developing countries. In this paper, the authors describe the success of the Global Health eLearning (GHeL) Center and share findings from its multi-phased evaluation. As a result of this successful experience, the Knowledge for Health (K4Health) Project, based at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Communication Programs (JHU∙CCP), implemented three unique country level eLearning programs that seek to improve the knowledge and skills of targeted local audiences as well as build the organizational capacity of the in-country partner organizations in delivering effective eLearning programs. The authors describe the unique applications of each, a variety of ways employed to overcome issues of access, and their lessons learned.
Highlights
In early 2000s, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) received inquiries from their field staff about a better way to access up-to-date technical public health information
Cekan Consulting found that the Global Health eLearning (GHeL) Center is a leader in transferring evidence-based knowledge to learners in developing countries, GHeL falls short in measuring the actual application of knowledge gained from courses
The survey was disseminated to all learners who accessed the GHeL Center between March 1, 2010 and February 28, 2011, including those who completed a course and those who started but did not complete a course
Summary
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that “the world faces a shortage of 4.3 million health professionals required for delivering essential health care services to populations in need” (Taylor, Hwenda, Larsen, & Daulaire, 2011, p. 2348). Internet-based instruction appears to have a large effect compared with no intervention and appears to have an effectiveness similar to traditional methods (Cook, Levinson, Garside, & Dupras, 2008) This finding was supported by an evaluation of an eLearning model focused on respiratory infection control for front-line health care workers in Kenya. K4Health works with subject matter experts in a variety of global health technical areas to develop their capacity to create asynchronous eLearning courses that are intended to improve the knowledge and comprehension skills of health professionals around the world. K4Health trains staff within partner organizations to plan, develop, manage, monitor and evaluate eLearning activities This approach increases capacity of organizations to provide continuous training and mentoring of staff and others and ensures that eLearning activities are responsive and relevant to on-the-ground realities of public health training in various organizations and geographic locations. K4Health’s experience building individual level capacity via GHeL courses and building organizational and country level capacity in South Africa, Nigeria, and Bangladesh will be discussed
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