Virtual expert panels: Bridging communities to promote exchange in global health delivery

Background: Venues for professional public health exchange have traditionally included academic conferences, published literature, and other colloquia. Until recently, few alternatives existed to gather providers and academics for meaningful and timely knowledge exchange. At the cross section of public health and health delivery, this need for a web-based, no-fee forum is paramount. Methods: In 2008, the Global Health Delivery Project at Harvard launched GHDonline.org, a virtual platform that now hosts nine public communities and 51 private communities for a diverse audience of 6,100+ health professionals. Members share resources, recommendations, and experiences from how to scale male circumcision for HIV prevention to ventilation design in TB clinics. Each month, GHDonline.org hosts “Expert Panels,” virtual, asynchronous conferences that all users may read and respond to during a two-week window. The Expert Panels reinforce dialogue across GHDonline.org's public communities, while engaging a diverse audience around a specific topic. Two recent Expert Panels focused on preserving wellness: "Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP): A promising, novel HIV prevention strategy," and "Wireless Technologies for Monitoring and Adherence." Results and Conclusion: The PrEP participants discussed issues related to adherence, implementation, and future research needs. The Wireless Technologies' panel included current technologies, implementation strategies, and cost issues. The data and content from each panel are published as a Discussion Brief, made available to all GHDonline users. Expert Panels are an innovative alternative to generate robust discussion, connect diverse practitioners, and uncover discrete knowledge in the field.