Description of Session
MEASURE Evaluation has used the DHIS 2 to build and/or strengthen health information systems in many parts of the world, notably in six sub-Saharan African countries. MEASURE’s work demonstrates comfort with the DHIS 2 technology, stakeholder engagement and ownership, contributions to capacity building, and a strong example of how to use a standard tool to solve the problems that arise in different settings by identifying approaches for context-specific solutions. Successful deployment of the same software has occurred in six countries with different objectives and approaches, but with success across the board. Whereas the DHIS 2 has remained true to its original format in Burundi and Madagascar, it has contributed to expanding both countries’ electronic health information system (in Burundi, DHIS 2 is now present in all hospitals and in 80% of facilities and in Madagascar, reporting completeness has improved by 50% in 4 years). In Burkina Faso, the DHIS 2 supports an innovative One Health electronic platform, tracking over 60 human, animal, and environmental diseases across three Ministries. In Cote d’Ivoire, DHIS 2 is integrating and connecting existing local software focused on HIV/AIDS, logistics, and orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) and adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) data, and is actively used in 100% of regions, districts, and hospitals. In Mali, where 100% of regions, districts, and hospitals (and 98% of community health facilities) are reporting into DHIS 2 (all in less than 16 months of implementation), it has become a one-stop shop, whether it be for patient-level data collection or notification of stock-outs. Finally, in Guinea, DHIS 2 was used to build a health information system from the ground up, introducing Guinea’s very first electronic system (deployed to 100% of districts and hospitals), and linking it to a MEASURE-created master facility list using DHIS 2 to power a facility registry. When MEASURE's work began in Guinea, there was no electronic health information system to speak of. Today, data completeness in DHIS 2 continues to improve and reaches 98% for health centers and 94% for hospitals. Although setting up the same software, MEASURE Evaluation’s experience of implementing DHIS 2 in six African countries illustrates the context-specificity and complexity of using a global good and successfully adapting it to the country needs and priorities.
