50 - How to use co-creation and human centered design for global health evaluation and program design

Abstract Information: This professional development workshop aims to build knowledge and skills in using co-creation and human centered design (HCD) approaches for health program evaluation and design. HCD is used in health programs to better understand the needs and context of end-users and to co-create context-appropriate solutions. HCD builds empathy and as such is a powerful vehicle for telling beneficiaries and end-users’ stories as part of program implementation and evaluation, and to inform program design. The workshop will start with the facilitators sharing real world cases of using co-creation and HCD approaches as part of immunization program evaluation, adaptation, and design in four countries (DRC, Mozambique, Nigeria, Benin). Teaching and discussion of these case studies will build understanding of common HCD tools and approaches and how they can be integrated into program design and evaluation to ensure that the preferences, needs, motivations, and lived experiences of program beneficiaries, community members and health systems stakeholders are included in the program’s design and evaluation. The group will discuss how these approaches differ even from typical participatory evaluation approaches and how they added value in these real-world examples. The presenters will share lessons learned in implementing these approaches. The second half of the workshop will use small group work where participants can practice applying their new knowledge and skills. Groups will select and apply HCD tools and approaches such as user personas, rapid prototyping, and group prioritization to a program evaluation example. Participants can bring their own program that they hope to evaluate or can use a workshop example provided by the facilitators.

Relevance Statement: Health and development programs and interventions risk not achieving their intended outcomes because they are not designed or implemented with the needs and preferences of end-users as well as service providers. Participatory evaluations that engage those end-users can more accurately identify the questions to ask, how to answer them, and with whom. When communities and end-users are engaged in evaluation – as well as program design and implementation – it increases the likelihood that evaluation findings will lead to implementable change. A recent surge of interest in human centered design (HCD)in global health speaks to the fact that design principles, mindsets, and tools offer promise in decolonizing and increasing the relevance of the design, implementation, and evaluation of health programs and interventions. This professional development workshop aims to build knowledge and skills in using co-creation and human centered design approaches for program design, implementation and evaluation. This workshop will be highly relevant for anyone interested in learning more about HCD and co-creation and how it can be integrated into participatory evaluation. It is also highly relevant to the overall conference theme, as the workshop will present HCD approaches that tell end-users stories during evaluation – and implementation and design – such as user personas and user journey maps. The workshop will be facilitated by a team of HCD and evaluation experts who designed and implemented co-creation and HCD evaluations of immunization programs in four countries (Benin, DRC, Mozambique, Nigeria). The workshop will start with the facilitators sharing real world cases of using co-creation and HCD approaches as part of immunization program design, implementation, adaptation, and evaluation in four countries (DRC, Mozambique, Nigeria, Benin). Teaching and discussion of these case studies will build understanding of common HCD tools and approaches and how they can be integrated into program design and evaluation to ensure that the preferences, needs, motivations, and lived experiences of community members and program beneficiaries are included in the program’s design and evaluation. The group will discuss how these approaches differ even from typical participatory evaluation approaches and how they add value in these real-world examples. The presenters will share lessons learned in implementing these approaches. The second half of the workshop will use small group work where participants can practice applying their new knowledge and skills. Groups will select and apply HCD tools and approaches such as user personas, rapid prototyping, and group prioritization to a program evaluation example. Participants can bring their own program that they hope to evaluate or can use a workshop example provided by the facilitators.