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“The Collections—That’s Where the Magic Is”

Reflections on a Year of FP/RH Knowledge Exchange on FP insight


In June 2021, Knowledge SUCCESS launched FP insight, the first resource discovery and curation tool built by and for the family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH) workforce. The platform addresses common knowledge management concerns expressed by those working in FP/RH. It allows users to curate collections of resources on FP/RH topics so they can easily return to those resources when they need them. Professionals can follow colleagues in their field and get inspiration from their collections and stay on top of trending topics in FP/RH. With over 750 members from Africa, Asia, and the United States sharing cross-cutting FP/RH knowledge, FP insight had an impactful first year! Exciting new features are on the horizon as FP insight rapidly evolves to best meet the diverse knowledge needs of the FP/RH community.

In Review: What Has Year One Looked Like on FP insight?

In 2020,  FP/RH professionals came together as part of four regional co-creation workshops hosted by Knowledge SUCCESS. Participants expressed that there were countless resources for finding FP/RH information…but a tool to bring everything together in one place was missing from the equation.

Enter FP insight. Inspired by social media sites, FP insight is a user-driven platform that was created to help FP/RH professionals discover and organize their favorite resources. Numerous FP/RH webinar invites, blog publications, and other resources arrive via email inboxes every week. Busy professionals can stay on top of what is timely and relevant in the FP/RH field and have a personal workspace to save and promote their favorite resources in one place!  

In just its first year, more than 750 members of the FP/RH workforce from 70 countries around the world joined FP insight. New users can search over 1,600 FP/RH posts on the platform, with new posts being added every day. These resources cover a wide range of topics, including gender, COVID-19’s impact on family planning services, menstrual hygiene management, digital health, FP/RH during emergencies, and so much more!

FP insight word cloud with the platform's trending topics highlighted. Topics include: COVID-19, CIMC, PHE, family planning, FP, gender, and digital health.
FP insight word cloud with the platform's trending topics highlighted. Topics include: COVID-19, CIMC, PHE, family planning, FP, gender, and digital health.

A recent survey of FP insight members confirmed the wealth of resources to discover on the platform. More than a quarter of survey respondents said that “discovering new FP/RH resources through the feeds” was the most common way they used the platform. FP insight members have also found dozens of other creative ways to strengthen their work! Need some inspiration for your own work? Try one of the suggestions below recommended by fellow FP/RH colleagues:

  • Start your day with FP insight. Stay up-to-date with what’s trending in FP/RH by taking the first 10 minutes of your day to see what your colleagues are sharing on FP insight. Not able to log in daily? Set a reminder on your calendar once a week to log in and catch up on all the great resources you’ve missed!
  • Find a home base for your working group. Is your working group looking for a new central location to store and share documents? With FP insight, you can add an unlimited number of collaborators to your collections, allowing you and your colleagues to curate themed collections together! Learn how here.
  • Amplify your work. Hosting an upcoming webinar? Launching a podcast? Publishing other resources? Share your work on FP insight to help the material reach a wider audience! One great example: guests on the Inside the FP Story podcast share a wealth of FP/RH resources during their interviews. To help listeners find the resources from their podcast episodes in one easy place, each podcast season has a corresponding FP insight collection for easy access and reading.
  • Save time by staying organized. By bookmarking your go-to resources in one central location on FP insight, you can free up valuable time that would otherwise be spent trying to find these documents. Using FP insight can give you more time for what matters! Remember these resources don’t have to be ones that you’ve authored personally. They can be any online resource that you use in your work or that you want to come back to later.
  • Showcase your leadership. Organizing and sharing collections on FP insight contributes to the larger FP/RH body of knowledge. As you come across great resources, add them to FP insight and grow your collection over time! The best part? As you add resources, FP insight automatically shares these posts to the newsfeed, so others can see what you’re saving and can gain inspiration from you. No additional work is required on your end! Are you an active FP insight user? Earn FP insight badges to showcase that you’re a knowledge management leader on the platform!

Want to see more examples of recent FP insight collections curated by your
FP/RH colleagues? Look no further!

FP insight’s Impact

Among recent FP insight survey respondents, 47% reported that they discovered information on FP insight that they applied to make decisions in their work. Some great examples?

“After reading [on FP insight] that FP/RH is also of concern to youth, I came up with a way to mobilize more young people to use FP/RH services through our yearly Contraception Awareness Week Campaign.”

Rwanda

“Having access to resources associated with AYSRH from various programs in other countries has really helped me in my programming. One of the challenges we’re facing as FP program managers is looking at acceptance towards young persons accessing SRH services. Now with FP insight, we are able to break this barrier, young people can have access to this information, and we can have health workers that are youth-friendly”

Nigeria

“I am developing a proposal on the impact of COVID-19 on contraceptive use in Tamale, Ghana. I have seen some information on the topic in FP insight that will guide me a lot.”

Ghana

To learn more about FP insight’s impact in its first year and plans for the future, read the full survey report (in English or French) below: 

With the FP/RH workforce from around the world using the platform, FP insight helps professionals just like you organize, save, and share resources to improve your work. 

But don’t just take our word for it—hear what FP/RH professionals around the world are saying about FP insight!

Click on the photos below to read FP insight stories from four FP/RH professionals:

Roadmap to Year Two of FP insight

As FP insight continues to grow, we are excited to develop new features to continue to ensure that FP insight meets the knowledge management needs of the FP/RH community! Through FP insight member interviews, surveys, and group feedback, FP insight updates in the upcoming year will center around feedback and new features designed by you and your colleagues. Stay tuned for some fun announcements of new ways to stay organized, share resources, and collaborate!

Until then, don’t miss out on the exciting features already available to you: 

  • Browse FP insight in over 20 languages. FP insight is available in 21 languages, including French, Swahili, Yoruba, and many more common written languages used across Africa and Asia. Learn how to change your language settings here.
  • Download the FP insight browser button: Did you know? The FP insight browser button can save you time as you’re exploring all of the great FP/RH content across the web. Learn more.
  • Save articles for offline viewing: No internet access? No problem! With FP insight, you can save HTML web articles to your device when you do have internet access, in order to view them later, even when you are away from internet connection.
  • Add FP insight to Your Home Screen: Want to use FP insight on your mobile device? Learn how to add FP insight to your home screen for quick access, without having to download an app.
  • Share FP insight Posts to Social Media: With one simple click, you can promote your FP insight collections and resources to a wider audience across Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or email—learn how and start sharing today!

Help Us Grow the FP insight Community

It takes only a few minutes to join today and we need YOUR help to spark more FP insight conversations! Sound intriguing? Take a few moments to complete the three steps below:

New to FP insight? Take these three easy steps today:

  1. Create an FP insight account and fill out your profile.
  2. Request an interactive training for you and your colleagues. Or learn more through our online HelpDesk, YouTube tutorial, and interactive scavenger hunt.
  3. Make your first post.

Already an FP insight user? Take these three steps to become an FP insight champion!

  1. Share this blog on social media, encouraging your colleagues to join you on FP insight. Use your own messaging or share our prepared tweet and downloadable colorful GIF. (Pro tip: If the GIF takes too long to load, try this static image instead.).
  2. Like five FP insight posts and follow five new FP insight users to diversify your newsfeed.
  3. Make your own post.

When more users regularly engage on FP insight, the benefit of the platform increases for everyone and the FP/RH body of knowledge grows stronger. That’s why we can’t wait to see you on FP insight soon!

Aoife O'Connor

Program Officer, Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs

Aoife O’Connor is a program officer at the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, where she serves as the programmatic lead for the FP insight platform through the USAID-funded Knowledge SUCCESS project. With nearly 10 years of public health experience in the sexual and reproductive health field, her primary interests include work centered on rights-based family planning, LGBTQ+ populations, violence prevention, and the intersection of gender, health, and climate change. Aoife holds a Master of Public Health and a Graduate Certificate in Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Management from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, alongside two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities in Gender & Sexuality Studies and International Studies.