Category: Practices
BID Initiative shares lessons and recommendations in new series of briefs
Sep 15, 2017
From its earliest days, the BID Initiative has been committed to sharing its learnings with others interested in improving immunization data quality and use. We recently launched a series of briefs summarizing our work alongside the governments of Tanzania and Zambia and our lessons and recommendations spanning seven key subject areas, ranging from the software development cycle, to change management, and peer learning.
Read MoreBID Initiative partners with I-TECH to track vaccinations with better data
Aug 22, 2017
The digital health landscape is rife with disconnected systems that make it challenging to aggregate information and improve the health of populations. After years of disjointed experiences, multiple organizations and governments have found that multi-platform, standardized, and connected information systems are critical to allow health care providers and decision makers access to timely and accurate information.
Read MoreHighlighting solutions from digital health – propelling the field out of the era of “wild west” data collection, into a data use culture
Jul 13, 2017
The decade between 2000-2010 can be described as the era of the digital health pilot program. This “wild west” offered a glimpse into the untapped potential of collecting data by integrating digital tools into current health systems, where information flow was previously stagnant or non-existent. In an effort to create lasting, high-impact improvements to healthcare delivery, sharing lessons and best practices learned from implementing these pilot programs can ensure that digital health moves beyond pilots and becomes a health system mainstay.
Read MoreEnsuring vaccines reach the people who need them most
Apr 28, 2017
Stacks of immunization registry ledgers tower above the desks and medical supplies. Each ledger contains rows and rows of patient records—their name, date of birth, the last time they received a vaccine, and which antigen, among other information.
Read MoreVietnam’s Digital Immunization Registry: Important lessons and parallels to BID Initiative
Apr 20, 2017
It used to take Ms. Linh more than a day to generate a list of immunization patients at the Phu Hung Commune Health center in southern Vietnam. Ms. Linh was responsible for manually entering each name and record into paper registers before personally delivering invitation letters for the upcoming clinic. These days, it takes a fraction of that time – just 15 minutes on the computer.
Read MoreWorld Health Worker Week celebrates unsung heroes
Apr 5, 2017
They are caretakers, educators, neighbors, peers, and family. They are also a critical backbone for health systems across the developing world, providing life-saving services directly to communities, even in the most remote, rural areas. Health care workers (HCWs) are often the first, and sometimes only point of contact with the health system – particularly in low and middle-income countries. But with a projected shortage of 18 million health workers required to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, HCWs are also often overworked and undervalued.
Read MoreSustainability: Better data beyond the BID Initiative
Feb 8, 2017
The BID Initiative’s objective is to improve data quality, use, and collection in the Zambian immunisation programme with the aim of improving the health outcomes of children. Making changes in the way health service staff use their data to make decisions is imperative, but once those changes and innovations are implemented, the government must ensure they are fully integrated into the day-to-day functions of their service delivery, with the budgetary and institutional commitments to support and maintain those functions
Read MoreTop 6 takeaways from the Global Digital Health Forum
Jan 30, 2017
We had the pleasure of attending the Global Digital Health Forum last month where the BID Initiative and Digital Health Solutions teams, along with other PATH teams, presented on several panels. As we move ahead with new and existing projects, we left the meeting encouraged by the work and collaboration among public- and private-sector partners to improve health system challenges. The following are six of the top takeaways from the event:
Read MoreThe Year 2016 in Photos
Dec 21, 2016
As 2016 comes to a close, we look back at the great progress we made this year towards providing countries with an adaptable package of solutions to improve data quality, collection and use. Thank you for following along on our journey and we look forward to an exciting and fruitful 2017.
Read MoreImplementation and Expansion in Tanzania
Oct 13, 2016
Implementation in Arusha Region Tanzania is in full swing with two districts (Arusha City and Meru districts) complete and a third district (Karatu) making excellent progress. We also held sensitization meetings with community leaders and health officials in a fourth district (Longido) in preparation for rollout in the coming weeks.
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