A Pilot WhatsApp-Based Community of Practice Model for Indonesian Schoolteachers and Health Professionals in Gender, Sexuality and Reproductive Health Education: an Evaluation

Introduction Gender, sexuality and reproductive health (GSRH) education in Indonesian schools remains a challenge despite attempts to improve it. An innovative model for Indonesian GSRH school teachers and local health professionals was piloted in two provinces in 2019–2021, incorporating a WhatsApp Group/WAG-based community of practice/CoP after a GSRH training. Methods Following a 2-day GSRH training, a WAG-CoP was offered in each province. Training participants voluntarily joined their province’s WAG to discuss post-training experiences with peers and the trainers for two years. After the first 12 months, a focus group discussion/FGD with Nominal Group Technique/NGT approach was conducted to evaluate the WAG-supported CoP model. After 24 months, WAG chat data were content-analysed to identify patterns of usage. Results There were 74 (Province A) and 34 (Province B) training participants. The CoP model failed to gain traction in Province A. Province B participants completed the 24-month pilot. Province B WAG interactions (1,021 posts) were in short bursts (median 1 day; upper-quartile 2 days), predominated by thumb-ups (23.8%), thank-yous (18.3%) and social greetings (14.0%). Province B’s FGD and NGT revealed promising outcomes of the WAG-CoP model and the need for in-person get-together. The COVID-19 impact prompted the need for an online version of the training. Conclusion The WAG-CoP for GSRH education in Indonesian schools had limited success. In-person interactions are needed to support the online forum. Policy Implications GSRH improvement in Indonesian schools needs to incorporate a blended-mode ongoing support from peers, health professionals and experts to enable continuing professional development.