Recorded presentation

Michael Edwards, PhD, MPH, John Snow, Inc., 1616 N. Fort Myer Drive, 11th Floor, Arlington, VA 22209, 7035287474, medwards@jsi.com

Decentralized Routine Health Information Systems in developing countries allow health program managers at both the district and national levels to better monitor and evaluate health programs by making available at all levels the data necessary for decision making. These data are often not fully exploited, due in part to weak analytic and data management skills of the program managers. If program managers have to spend too much time preparing these data for analysis, then there is insufficient time available for analyzing the trends in the data, and using the information for decision making. This paper presents the experience of John Snow Inc (JSI) and the Eritrean Ministry of Health in developing Eritrea’s computerized decision support system. The decision support system is a module added to the existing National Health Management Information System that allows decision-makers to rapidly visualize graphically the health indicators needed for health program monitoring and evaluation. The process involves choosing from a user-friendly interface the level of analysis, the health program, the program specific indicator, and the graphical display. These displays include line graphs for time trends, histograms and thematic maps for geographic comparisons, as well as pie charts and summary tables. Early results show that the DSS has been widely appreciated by health managers as a planning and programming tool for health activities. However, even when quality data are available and well presented, managers and care providers tend to make little use of information for decision making. More research is needed to explore the importance on data use of other determinants such as the organizational environment as well as individual behavioral factors.

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