Category: Practices
Health Workers Successfully use WhatsApp to Solve Problems
May 7, 2015
During the testing phase of interventions in four health facilities in the districts of Meru and Arusha, we established a WhatsApp group as a communication forum for healthcare workers.
Read MoreOpportunities for Home-Based Immunization Records
Apr 9, 2015
The BID Initiative is on the brink of implementing a national electronic immunization system in Tanzania while countries yet to implement such a system often turn to home-based records for immunization programs. With scarce public health resources and the need for accurate data on immunization coverage, home-based records can be an effective way to track if children are receiving the vaccines they need. However, is there a need for a more durable, coordinated system for home-based records?
Read MoreOvercoming Supply Chain Bottlenecks at the Community Level
Feb 9, 2015
A key component in the BID Initiative approach focuses on supply chain interventions. Interventions such as barcode technology, alerts for expired vaccines and using this data in supply and inventory reports will ensure each clinic has adequate vaccine supply, the district officials have visibility into and can better manage supply levels and the community health workers are trained in supply chain management. Today, we take a look at how another organization, JSI, is Improving Supply Chains for Community Case Management (SC4CCM) through a five-year learning project.
Read MorePerspectives on the Design Collaborative
Dec 11, 2014
Last week’s BLN Design Collaborative brought together health officials from 9 sub-Saharan African countries to discuss and iterate on the design of BID Initiative solutions. The meeting provided a fantastic opportunity for country partners to gather and learn from one another. I personally had the chance to sit down with some of the attendees to discuss challenges related to immunization data in their countries and get their perspective on the value of peer learning and their role in the BLN as a design country.
Read MoreDigital Health at Scale: Getting Beyond Pilot Projects
Dec 9, 2014
It took almost 20 years for barcodes to be fully adopted across the grocery industry. Today they’re in use worldwide, delivering efficiency and automation on a massive scale. It took the efforts of a dedicated visionary to show the impact that a single, universal-sized shipping container would bring to the trucking and freight industry. Today, shippers around the globe can be sure that a standard-sized container will fit on the truck that delivers it to the port in Mombasa and on the truck that unloads it in Seattle.
Read MoreHow to Improve Access to Affordable Health Care
Nov 13, 2014
In support of their Healthy Means campaign, Devex published an article, “How to improve access to affordable health care,” that resonates with some of the work we are doing with the BID Initiative. The article stresses that while access and affordability are important, without strong health systems and quality service delivery with accountability and effective oversight, health care service will remain insufficient.
Read MorePerspectives on the Digital Development Opportunity
Oct 31, 2014
PATH’s DHS team has been early supporters and shapers of the GreenTree Consensus, a set of principles focusing on the importance of working with governments and key stakeholders to ensure that all projects and services are appropriate, scalable and affordable. Kate Wilson, a key advisor to the BID Initiative, recently provided her perspective on the article on the PATH blog, citing the BID Initiative as a great example of how technology is enabling innovative solutions to global problems.
Read MoreInterventions: Community Micro-training Videos
Oct 29, 2014
In an effort to build on momentum being gained within PATH, the Better Immunization Data (BID) Initiative is leveraging a project that is bringing micro-training videos to targeted communities. More specifically, Projecting Health is a community-led, video-driven approach that empowers the communities to identify, develop and produce their own videos to foster the adoption of desired behaviors.
Read MoreFirst Field Visit in Zambia’s Southern Province
Oct 27, 2014
The week of October 12th the Better Immunization Data (BID) Initiative team in Zambia and I began our first field activities in the Southern Province. We were joined by representatives from the Ministry of Community Development Mother and Child Health at national, provincial and district levels who visited facilities in Livingstone and helped us kick off an exciting journey to develop solutions and interventions for better health outcomes. The visit to the district was preceded by a meeting with the Provincial Medical Officer, Dr. Jelita Chinyonga, who expressed excitement over the BID Initiative’s presence which will help address existing challenges on immunization data-capturing and data-use in her province and enhance service provision at all levels of the health care system.
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