ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Digital Tools and Organizational Design
DIP
collaborates closely with the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) to enhance its analytical capabilities
and develop analytical tools to improve data use. As a result of these comprehensive training sessions, DGHS
personnel have created eight analytical briefs that have been presented to relevant stakeholders and worked with
the COVID response team to develop reports that guided their actions. In order to institutionalize this work,
DGHS has established a specialized unit tasked with the regular development of analytical products and policy
briefs that the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare can use to inform policy and resource allocation.
This unit is also responsible for managing, maintaining, and leading review sessions of a dashboard designed to
provide real-time updates on progress toward the objectives outlined in each Line Director’s operational plan, as
well as the Hospital Service Management dashboard, a digital tool that enables the monitoring and evaluation of key
indicators related to hospital service demand. DIP continues to collaborate with DGHS in the organizational design
of this unit.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data for Decision Makers
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Organizational Design
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communication
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
With support from DIP, a
capacity-building workshop on mortality data analysis was conducted for national and subnational analysts,
including staff from nine regions. Each regional team worked with its regional mortality database assessing
completeness of the data, correcting for underreporting, determining the leading causes of mortality,
calculating the years of life lost due to premature death and estimating age-standardized mortality rates.
As a result, teams produced the first mortality report in Bolivia to include leading causes of death and crude and standardized mortality. The leading causes of death at the national level and for each of the regions for 2019 were presented to Ministry of Health leadership in health programs, planning and epidemiology. Based on the findings, the leadership prioritized topics to be explored for intervention proposals in the areas of child health, maternal health, violence, cancer and renal health.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Digital Data Solutions
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports and Organizational Design
DIP supported the National Institute of Statistics (NIS) in developing thematic reports on fertility and reproductive health, as well as mortality and domestic violence, that analyze the data available in the Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey 2021-22 in greater detail. This was the first time the NIS, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Women’s Affairs, led and conducted the analysis directly on these three topics, which increased institutional and individual ownership of the work. The final reports were presented to decision-makers of the three relevant agencies during an event presided by the Minister of Planning. Staff that participated in the development of the reports enhanced their understanding of the process to develop effective public health reports.
DIP continues to support NIS staff in strengthening processes and systems for developing vital statistics from civil registry data. DIP delivered training and mentoring to the NIS staff to analyze the quality and completeness of available civil registry digital data and provide recommendations for improving the system. DIP has also provided guidance to the NIS to analyze data to support the monitoring and evaluation of the Health-CR Link, the pilot system that enables interoperability between the health sector and civil registry data.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
Adolescents and youth in
Cameroon need appropriate reproductive health services. In 2020, 33% of the population was estimated to be
adolescents and young people (15-24 years) and according to the latest Demographic and Health Survey, the
adolescent birth rate is 122 per thousand, with 26% of maternal deaths occurring in adolescent girls. In 2014,
the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) established Adolescent Reproductive Health Units (ARHU) in district
hospitals in five of Cameroon's ten regions to offer a minimum package of services.
The DIP team worked with the Family Health Directorate to analyze data on the functioning of ARHUs. The analysis showed high levels of satisfaction in users of the services and high utilization and quality of services, although some gaps were noted for specific services (e.g., gender-based violence). The report was well received by the MoPH and provided evidence for having dedicated services for this group of the population. This led to a decision by the Minister to extend the ARHUs to all hospitals, from general to district category. In addition, the MoPH organized a meeting to advocate and disseminate strategic tools for adolescent sexual and reproductive health with the aim of harmonizing future interventions in the country.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy, Data Driven Leadership Development, Analytics for Public Health Practices
The DIP team led two Data to Policy (D2P) workshops for the Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (SCDC) during 2016-18. The participants produced several policy briefs which led to policy changes, including passing the smoking-free regulation and inclusion of mandatory helmet use for e-bike riders in Shanghai. SCDC, with support from DIP, established a local D2P trainer team, and adapted the curriculum to their local context. DIP then expanded the D2P program to the Shandong and Anhui provinces, where the program was facilitated by the SCDC trainers. In addition, SCDC trainers developed an abbreviated D2P curriculum and delivered workshops for several districts in Shanghai.
DIP collaborated with SCDC to conduct the Data-Centered Leadership (DCL) program for Shanghai. The DCL program aims to strengthen the ability of public health managers to use data effectively for programmatic decision-making and identifying opportunities to improve data use practices within their organizations. Shanghai participants developed data use improvement plans by the end of the workshop. DIP is working with SCDC to adapt the curriculum and develop a local version.
In collaboration with SCDC and Fudan University, DIP developed two data analytics training courses for public health professionals, including the training on Analysis of Association between Meteorological Factors and Mortality and the training on Geographic Information System and Spatial Analysis for Public Health Practice. Shanghai trainers delivered these trainings for Shandong and Anhui provinces.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Institutional Data Use Policy
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: CRVS Data Use, Data to Policy
In Ethiopia,
DIP works closely with government partners to strengthen data-driven policy decision-making. In collaboration
with the Knowledge Translation Directorate of the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, DIP has implemented the
Data to Policy program, which is resulting in four policy briefs drawing upon local data to guide resource
allocation and program development related to maternal survival, road safety and cervical cancer screening. DIP
has also partnered with the Ministry of Health Leadership Executive Office on Policy, Strategy and Research on
the development of a research roadmap that seeks to establish national priorities for the commissioning of
research to address critical public health issues in the country. In addition, DIP works with the Ethiopian
Statistical Service on establishing standardized business processes and operating procedures for the production
of high-quality vital statistics and analytic reports on vital events trends.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision-makers
Data to Policy
Data Reports
Institutional Data Use Policy
Organizational Design
Public Health Bulletin
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Organizational Design, Analytics for Public Health Practice
A
dedicated Data Analytics Unit (DAU) with four staff was established in the Mumbai Health Department, with support
from DIP. The DAU provides the necessary analytics to inform decision-making by producing reports to support policy
and guidelines development, as well as assists with program evaluation for the Mumbai Health Department. The Health
Department has provided additional funding for DAU staff positions and hired 40 data entry operators.
Analysis of mortality data from 2016-2019 revealed that non-communicable diseases contribute to 75% of the deaths in Mumbai. These findings helped prompt Mumbai’s governing civic body, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, to expand the delivery of disease screenings for early detection and referral.
The Mumbai Health Department also began a massive community-based hypertension screening program in January 2023. In a short span of 15 months, 125,000 suspect hypertension cases were found amidst 18,00,000 residents aged 30 and above. In addition, NCD corners have been established across 26 hospitals for opportunistic screening of adults visiting hospitals as patients or their relatives.
Dilaasa Centers, operating in 13 peripheral hospitals in Mumbai, are one-stop crisis centers that provide comprehensive medical, counselling and referral services to victims of gender-based violence. To address data management challenges, DIP developed a monitoring and evaluation framework, standardized data collection and reporting tools and supported data analysis to ensure effective use of data for programmatic decisions. Analysis revealed that 15% of GBV survivors were pregnant and a majority of cases were identified in antenatal clinics, prompting the expansion of services to 30 maternity homes. Staff training in all 30 maternity homes has been conducted. To address underutilization, community health workers will be trained to raise awareness about GBV and Dilaasa Center services.
The Seth G.S. Medical College and KEM Hospital, with support from DIP, produced a report that reiterates the need for data in bringing the issue of gender-based violence center stage.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision Makers
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: CRVS Data Use
In 2021, the DIP and CRVS teams connected with PUSKAPA, the Center
for Child Protection and Wellbeing, a research think tank at Universitas Indonesia. This partnership facilitated collaboration with the Ministry of
National Development Planning (Bappenas), the CRVS National Secretariat (Seknas AKPSH), the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), the Ministry of Home
Affairs (MoHA), and the Ministry of Health (MoH). In this phase, the DIP project is primarily focused on improving the analysis, production, and use
of vital statistics. The work efforts are closely aligned with the CRVS Program to undertake a review of the vital statistics business processes and
complete a legal review of the relevant legislature.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
CData Reports
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
Building on prior
collaborations on evidence-informed policy briefs, Kenya’s Ministry of Health (MOH) launched the country’s first
Data to Policy program in 2022 with the Civil Registration Service (CRS). Following the successful development of
policy recommendations, nine facilitators from MOH and CRS participated in a training of trainers to be to be able
to lead subsequent training. To strengthen the economic evaluation component of the program, health economists from
KEMRI-Wellcome Trust, which houses the largest health economics unit in Africa and has a mandate to support
government in health economic analysis, were also included in the trainers group.
Facilitators from MOH, CRS and KEMRI-Wellcome Trust have since mentored four teams to produce policy briefs on neonatal mortality, expired medicines, birth registration and breast cancer. The Policy and Research Division at the MOH plans to institutionalize the process of using data to inform policies at national and county levels. D2P facilitators will be a resource pool at their respective agencies and will train the counties and sub-counties on data use. Trainers will also be active in technical working groups advancing policy development.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Organizational Design
DIP supported the
Ministry of Health in developing customized and interactive Regional Dashboards to visualize and display regional
health indicators for regions to monitor progress and performance of health outcomes, and to improve
decision-making at the sub-national level. As the dashboards are flexible, regional staff can add new indicators
as needed. The data is entered into the same platform where data is visualized, reducing the time for data
cleaning and analysis, which allows the regions to see their data in near real-time. The Regional Dashboards have
been implemented in four regions with plans to expand to all 12 regions of Morocco.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data for Decision Makers
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
DIP worked with the
National Statistics Institute (INE) to apply guidance on producing vital statistics to develop the country’s
first vital statistics report. The report identified areas of improvement for vital events registration and data
processing. Subsequently, the INE has developed annual vital statistics reports independently and is also
producing provincial factsheets.
The team is also working with National Institute of Health (INS) to use data from the Countrywide Mortality Surveillance for Action (COMSA) system to develop specialized topical reports, including on the social determinants of mortality. COMSA data provide unique insights, as other data sources on social determinants of health lack mortality information on outcomes. This process provided INS staff with the opportunity to develop advanced statistical and software skills to analyze mortality data. DIP is also supporting the 2021-2022 COMSA report, accompanying factsheets, and dissemination strategy.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Journalist/Comm Staff Training
Organizational Design
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communications
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Analytics for Public Health Practice, Data Driven Leadership Development
DIP
delivered a training on Data Analytics in Papua New Guinea for provincial health information officers (PHIO) and
managers from all twenty-two provinces of Papua New Guinea, as well as staff from the Performance Monitoring and
Research Branch (PMRB) of the National Department of Health (NDOH). Activities focused on how to communicate key
findings from the data into statements about performance to support decision-making at the senior level. This was
followed by provincial-level training of monitoring and evaluation staff in collaboration with PNG Australia
Transition to Health (PATH) program. The participants worked in groups to implement a data analysis/use project and
shared the implementation results with mentors after three months.
The Data-Centered Leadership program was conducted for directors of all Provincial Health Authorities (PHAs). The DCL program enhances the ability of health leaders to use data effectively for operational, programmatic, and policy decision-making, while also identifying opportunities to improve data use practices within their organizations. The participants developed data use improvement plans by the end of the workshop. Post-training mentoring provided support to participants for implementing their data use improvement project. These projects focused on various aspects of data use such as improving matrices to be more comprehensive in measurement, building capacity of their team members on analysis, conducting advanced analysis, improving data products such as reports/dashboards or initiating/improving review processes. The DCL curriculum has also been integrated into the Health Executive Leadership Development certificate course developed in partnership with the University of PNG and Asian Development Bank supported Health Services Sector Development Program for emerging health leaders in the provinces.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
The Rwanda Biomedical
Center (RBC) has been a key partner in the Data Impact Program, focusing on sustaining activities established
through Data for Health (D4H) in collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
and the CDC Foundation. RBC developed a 5-year strategic plan to enhance data-driven public health policymaking
in Rwanda, demonstrating its commitment to institutionalizing activities. The Data to Policy (D2P) program in
Rwanda has grown significantly. Three trainings were implemented between 2018 and 2024, training 42 public
health professionals and producing six policy briefs. To ensure sustainability, a D2P Training of Trainers was
conducted in April 2024, aiming to create local mentors for future cohorts. The program's outcomes have been
widely disseminated through various channels, including the monthly Science and Innovation Platform Forum,
social media, and teleconferences, targeting policymakers, NGOs, researchers, and the public. This highlights
the program's success and integration into Rwanda's public health strategy.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communications
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data for Decision-makers, Analytics for Public Health Practice, Data Reports
Senegal
developed its first national strategy on equity and gender in 2005. Since then, an intersectoral committee was set
up to implement the strategy. Each ministry has a unit responsible for integrating gender aspects into the policies
of the sector concerned. The DIP collaborated with the Gender Equality Unit of the Ministry of Health and Social
Action (MSAS) to better integrate gender equity measures into MSAS activities using a new indicator framework. A
situation analysis was carried out to determine the status of gender equity measures. Existing gender equality
indicators were reviewed, and new indicators were developed. Current data were analyzed and the first MSAS report
on gender was produced.
Following this publication, DIP is currently conducting gender-sensitive data analysis training with key departments of MSAS. This training is a crucial step in establishing a formal, sustainable, evidence-based process for integrating gender priorities into health policies. The plan is to produce a second gender equality report, policy briefs and scientific articles through the training and mentoring provided by the DIP. At the same time, the Department of Planning, Research and Statistics is revising data collection tools to incorporate the newly defined gender indicators in DHIS2. This will continue to improve the collection, analysis and use of gender data in decision-making.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision-Makers
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
The HIS Unit in the Ministry of Health and Medical Services is DIP’s key partner in the
Solomon Islands. DIP supported the development of training needs assessment tools for the national HIS team. These tools were used to assess the skills gap in the
provincial analysts which was subsequently mitigated through training provided by the national HIS team, with support from the DIP team. The course curriculum included
reviewing DHIS2 outputs, producing health profiles, and disseminating quarterly provincial reports. More recently, the national HIS team took the lead in drafting the
quarterly provincial profiles with feedback and mentoring support from DIP. DIP made recommendations for revising the reporting template and for further training.
The DIP team also provided the HIS team with technical assistance to produce the annual health profiles for all ten provinces. These profiles are used by provincial
health directors in developing their Annual Operational Plans.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Data to Policy
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Public Health Bulletin
The
Public Health Bulletin South Africa (PHBSA) is published by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases
(NICD) and the National Institute for Occupational Health (NIOH). The PHBSA is a quarterly publication that
provides information on surveillance activities, which enables effective monitoring of rates and distribution of
diseases, detection of outbreaks, monitoring of interventions, and predicting emerging hazards. Under the Data
Impact Program, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the CDC Foundation collaborate with
NICD and NIOH to strengthen the PHBSA. Outputs of activities include a communication strategy, standard
operating procedures, a rebranded and re-launched publication and website, and trainings on writing and
reviewing articles for the PHBSA.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data to Policy
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communication
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
DIP collaborated with
Ministry of Health officials within the Non-communicable Diseases Unit to produce the country’s first analytical
report on the “National Policy and Strategic Framework for Prevention and Control of Chronic Non-communicable
Diseases 2010-2020” (NCD Policy). This report quantitatively and qualitatively assessed the extent to which the
implementation of the NCD Policy met its objective to reduce premature mortality due to NCDs in Sri Lanka over
the past decade. Findings and recommendations from the report informed the implementation of the next 10-year
NCD Policy and NCD-related programs in Sri Lanka.
Furthermore, six policy briefs that were produced through the D2P Program targeted NCD policy options. The policy recommendations were integrated into the subsequent 10-year Non-Communicable Disease Policy for 2020-2029, including adopting initiatives to address other NCDs, such as eye disorders, chronic liver disease, and hearing disorders.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data for Decision-makers
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Institutional Data Use Policy
Journalist / Communication Staff Training
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
Tanzania's Data to Policy
(D2P) program, part of the Data Impact Program, was launched in 2017 under the Ministry of Health (MOH) in
collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the CDC Foundation. The program
aims to enhance MOH capacity in strengthening public health policies and programs through data-driven
decision-making. In 2022, the D2P training involved 15 participants from the MOH and academic institutions,
focusing on five priority health topics. The resulting policy briefs addressed critical issues such as ART
adherence, malaria mortality reduction, and HIV testing in infants. A significant milestone was achieved in
December 2023 with a Training of Trainers workshop, preparing seven participants from key health organizations
to become D2P facilitators and mentors. This step is crucial for the program's sustainability. The second D2P
cohort, scheduled for 2024, will be led by local mentors, marking a significant step towards institutionalizing
D2P within the MOH and ensuring its long-term impact on Tanzania's public health landscape.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Journalist / Communication Staff Training
Scientific Communications
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
Thailand joined the
Data Impact (DI) Program within the Data for Health Initiative in January 2020, supporting existing initiatives
in the Ministry of Public Health's Division of Epidemiology in collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) and the CDC Foundation. The Data to Policy (D2P), part of the Data Impact Program,
works closely with the Field Epidemiology Training Program to provide additional training and mentorship.
The first D2P training, which involved eight public health professionals, took place from February to September
2022. Two policy briefs on COVID-19 vaccines and air pollution were produced and presented to decision-makers.
A D2P Training of Trainers workshop followed in May 2023, with 10 mentors, including two D2P graduates. The
second D2P cohort, held in May 2024, was country-led and adapted to the local context. It involved
16 participants divided into four groups, focusing on various health policy topics. The training used
Thai-translated materials and local mentors, marking a significant step towards sustainable implementation
of D2P in the Thai language for developing policy briefs.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data to Policy
Journalist / Communication Staff Training
Scientific Communications
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Public Health Bulletin
For over eight
years, the Uganda National Institute of Public Health (UNIPH) has consistently published the
Uganda Public Health Bulletin (UPHB). Under the
Data Impact Program, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the CDC Foundation work with
the UNIPH to support the production and dissemination of the UPHB. Its purpose is to inform district, national
and global-level partners of activities undertaken to detect, prevent, and respond to public health events in the
country. The UPHB is also used as a training function of the Public Health Fellowship Program (also known as the
Field Epidemiology Training Program). Fellowship graduation requirements include two articles published in the UPHB.
Outputs of activities include a communication strategy, standard operating procedures, a rebranded and re-launched
website, and trainings on writing and reviewing articles for the UPHB.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data to Policy
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communications
Hidden
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
DIP is working
closely with the General Statistics Office in Vietnam to develop the first vital statistics report and establish
the process for their routine production. To enable this, Vital Strategies and UNFPA supported the General
Statistics Office, Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Health in signing a Memorandum of Understanding that
establishes a mechanism to share and exchange necessary data between the three agencies to produce an annual
vital statistics report.
Working with the General Department of Preventative Medicine (GDPM), DIP carried out a landscape assessment which identified gaps in data and available digital tools for Non-Communicable Disease control policymaking. From the evidence provided by this assessment, DIP and GDPM are now jointly working on activities for strengthening NCD monitoring, as well as strengthening surveillance data for alcohol use and alcohol-related risk factors.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision-makers
Data Reports
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Scientific Communications
The Zambia
National Public Health Institute (ZNPHI) joined the Data for Health Initiative in 2016 to implement Data Impact
Program activities. In 2016 and 2017, two Scientific Communication (SC) trainings, including Training of
Trainers were implemented to train Zambia field Epidemiology Training Program residents. The course aims to
equip public health professionals with the skills necessary to disseminate scientific findings at conferences
and publish scientific findings in national and international peer-reviewed publications. Most recently in
April 2024, the Data Impact Program conducted a 4-day SC training to 32 participants, including 18 FETP
residents and 9 mentors. The morning sessions were didactic, covering all aspects of scientific communication
(written, oral, and visual). The afternoon sessions were experiential, with residents meeting with their mentors
and applying the skills they learned to their writing projects. Residents will continue drafting scientific
manuscripts for publication under the guidance of their assigned mentors.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data to Policy
Institutional Data Use Policy
Organizational Design
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communications
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Journalists/Communication Staff Training
DIP
collaborated with the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) to support the analysis of its 2022 National
Population Census, which included new questions on civil registration of births, deaths, marriages, and divorces.
ZIMSTAT then collaborated with DIP to analyze questions concerning vital statistics and produce a vital
statistics report informed by census data. This report helped ZIMSTAT and the Civil Registry Department gain a
better understanding of population statistics in Zimbabwe and gaps in the CRVS system.
To support the dissemination of findings and advocacy of recommendations to decision-makers, DIP conducted a CRVS Journalism Training to equip journalists in Zimbabwe with the right tools to write meaningful articles on CRVS. A few journalists from the training published articles on findings from the report, advocating for policies ranging from the need for improved civil registration to the rising number of adolescent girls that had given birth. The latter finding prompted the Health Chair of the National Parliament Committee to raise the issues of child marriages and sexual abuse to the Zimbabwe National Parliament during a recent Assembly meeting.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Journalists/Communication Staff Training
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
Vital Strategies has been working with Brazil’s Ministry of Health to expand Saúde Brasil (the annual review of the nation’s health) to include state-by-state health situation
assessments for the first time. To complement this expanded report, Vital Strategies used our Portal Development Platform to create a portal hosted on the Ministry of Health
website that allows users to obtain: 1) time trend and sub-group comparisons in a state for one specific cause of death and 2) the top 10 causes of death for each state.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data for Decision Makers
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Scientific Communications
Digital Data Solutions
Analytics for Public Health Practice
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Analytics for Public Health Practice
Colombia’s high-quality national Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) have been under-utilized as a data source for health analyses in the
country. Vital Strategies developed a hands-on 7-day workshop for 11 epidemiologists, statisticians and analysts representing Colombia’s Division of Epidemiology and Demography
and the National Statistics Office with the goal of teaching participants how to better understand, analyze and use the DHS. The workshop consisted of didactic presentations,
group work and individual exercises.
Participants were assigned three teams charged with conducting analysis to address a specific question of interest to the Ministry and prepare a publishable report in the three months after the workshop. The selected analysis projects were: factors associated with deferred maternity (inequalities in access to contraception), analysis of the internal quality of maternal mortality data for estimating maternal mortality ratios, and the relationship between sexual violence and fertility.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Institutional Data Use Policy
Organizational Design
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communications
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Analytics for Public Health Practice
Vital Strategies has worked with the National Statistics Office leadership to conceptualize the purpose, mandate, and objectives of the
unit and to share best practices for data integration, hosting, analysis and use. The observatory is establishing a new data management and analysis model that includes
administrative data, thematic surveys, and census data related to health, social characteristics, and living conditions. This system will allow the development of products,
both descriptive and analytical, and provide relevant input into government health and social policies including poverty and living conditions in Ecuador, maternal mortality
(a method for calculating and revising estimates of historic trends), adolescent pregnancy (a method for calculating and revising estimates of historic trends) and childhood
malnutrition prevalence estimates for small geographic areas.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: CRVS Data Use
The government has been steadily improving CRVS data collection but had focused less on building capacity toward effectively analyzing
and using the data to support public health policy and practice. To address this, Vital Strategies and the University of Melbourne delivered a CRVS Data Use Workshop for
41 technical analysts and communication staff from the Ghana Health Service (GHS), the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), and the Births and Deaths Registry (BDR). Areas
of focus of the workshop included basic and advanced analytic measures, completeness and data quality, life tables, comparing mortality and identifying inequalities, and
communication and dissemination of vital statistics.
On the last day of the workshop, a select team met to discuss quality and analytic concerns related to data sources for CRVS-related Sustainable Development Goal indicators and informed the government’s current indicator tracking plan.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision Makers
Data to Policy
Institutional Data Use Policy
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data for Decision Makers
Vital Strategies worked for several months with Malawi to finalize the country’s National Health Indicators, after several years of work
by various partners to develop them. Vital Strategies: met with programs to finalize a list of national health indicators, definitions, data sources, baselines and targets;
mapped different data sources for each indicator to ensure better use of data and triangulation of data, as well as identifying duplication within the health information
system; defined the exact calculations to be used in the DHIS2 system, to ensure that the indicators displayed through DHIS2 are calculated correctly; and provided detailed
guidance on the interpretation of each indicator.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data for Decision Makers
Institutional Data Use Policy
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
The Data to Policy (D2P) program has been well established in Myanmar. This
commenced with two rounds of training that led to the production of 16 policy briefs , 14 of which led to policy change. The Program has now been institionalized
as 15 ministry staff (D2P alumni) completed a training of the trainer. These trained facilitators then applied their skills by running a locally-led D2P course
in Burmese. The Ministry's commitment to the program was also confirmed by the establishment of an official training facility in Pyin Oo Lwin. During the COVID-19
pandemic, the D2P alumni recognized the need to have evidence-based policies on COVID-19. The team proposed to the Union Minister the establishment of
“The COVID-19 Policy Analytics Group”(CPAG) that consists of members from various D2P cohorts and departments from MoHS. The Minister approved the formulation of
this group, whose aim is to analyze local COVID-19 related policies by evaluating their epidemiological impacts and social and economic outcomes in Myanmar.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data for Decision-Makers
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: CRVS Data Use
The CRVS Data Analysis course, developed jointly by Vital Strategies and the University of Melbourne, was conducted in Spanish with two separate groups: regional
statisticians and regional epidemiologists. The 60 participants included staff from all 30 of Peru’s regions. The course (1.5 days for regional statisticians and 2.5
days for regional epidemiologists) was an applied training that promoted analysis and development of data products (reports or briefs) to guide public health
decision-making.
Region-specific mortality databases were provided to participants for analysis. In order to receive completion certificates, in the two months following the workshop, participants received mentoring to complete an analysis of mortality in their region. Epidemiologists also presented their findings and recommendations to their regional health directors.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data for Decision Makers
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
Data to Policy
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
The Philippines was among
the first countries to implement the Data to Policy (D2P) program and has increasingly mainstreamed the use of
data-driven policy analysis in policy development. Policy briefs developed under the program directly inform
health sector priorities and the rollout of the landmark Universal Health Care Law.
Managed by the Department of Health’s Health Policy Development and Planning Bureau (DOH-HPDPB), Data to Policy in the Philippines is a key component of the Health Evidence Translation Initiative. More than a dozen D2P facilitators from the health sector provide technical assistance and mentoring to colleagues across central and regional DOH offices in the use of relevant data for policy and cost-effectiveness analysis. D2P online learning materials have been localized and are available to all health sector professionals through the DOH Academy, an online learning platform. The DOH has also been at the forefront of integrating gender analysis into the D2P approach.
Data to Policy recommendations in the Philippines have had an impact on vaccination strategies, disease surveillance, health financing, and other national and local government priorities.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision-makers
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Institutional Data Use Policy
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Organizational Design
Bolivia
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data for Decision Makers
DIP worked with the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) to develop dashboards that would have up-to-date information on progress toward meeting the goals set
in each Line Directors’ 5-year operational plan. A model dashboard was created for the Line Director responsible for Hospital Service Management (HSM). This model provides an integrated platform that the HSM Line Director can use to monitor a range of different
types of operational goals. The dashboard also allows the HSM Line Directors to monitor the utilization of facilities, providing them with timely information on how service demand changes, allowing for rapid responses and appropriate allocation of resources based
on performance. This dashboard element has been particularly useful for facility-based mortality surveillance during COVID-19. The structure of the HSM dashboard will be replicated to create dashboards for other DGHS Line Directors.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data for Decision Makers
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Organizational Design
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communication
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
DIP supported the National Institute of Statistics (NIS)
with the analysis of civil registration data for the province of Kep. Training on vital statistics report writing using civil registration
data was delivered to NIS staff and attended by staff from the General Directorate of Identification (GDI) from the Ministry of Interior.
Improved collaboration between NIS and GDI led to the sharing of civil registration data by GDI with NIS. Mentoring sessions were provided
to the NIS team to support data analysis and report writing.
The government now has a vision of publishing national reports by 2026, recognizing the gaps that need to be addressed by then. The Ministry of Interior is working with the NIS and MOH to identify where and how these gaps have occurred in the civil registration system and to implement specific solutions. The Kep report has provided the evidence that highlighted these gaps and is serving as an advocacy tool when engaging with the National Steering Committee on Civil Registration and Identification.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
The DIP team started working in Senegal early in 2020 with the
Ministry of Health and Social Action, the National Agency for Statistics and Demography, and the Ministry of Territorial Communities, Development
and Regional Planning. Activities had commenced at the start of the pandemic and support was shifted to supporting government’s COVID-19 response.
DIP collaborated with the Ministry to conduct the first two in-action reviews to ensure that lessons learned would be captured and integrated into response efforts to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first review focused on the initial management of COVID-19 cases and contacts and resulted in operational changes such as an increased reliance on community-based strategies. The second review included a focus on national leadership structures to the COVID-19 response and highlighted important communication and coordination challenges that were presented and shared within the response structures. This led to the development of a technical brief addressing communication within different facets of the pandemic response.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy & Digital Data Solutions
The DIP team led two Data to Policy (D2P) workshops for Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (SCDC) during 2016-18, the
participants produced several policy briefs which led to policy changes, including passing the smoking-free regulation and inclusion of mandatory helmet use for e-bike riders in the traffic regulation in Shanghai. SCDC, with support from DIP, established
the local D2P trainer team, adapted the curriculum to local context. DIP expanded the D2P program to Shandong and Anhui provinces. D2P program in Anhui and Shandong was facilitated by the SCDC trainers.
DIP is collaborating with SCDC to produce a public portal on nutrition and obesity patterns and smoking and hypertension risk behavior survey data in the city. Not only does the portal provide access to the public health data of the specific topics, it also offers recommendations on how citizens can improve their health. DIP is also working with Shandong CDC to create tools to provide access to data collected from surveys on salt intake and hypertension.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Institutional Data Use Policy
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: CRVS Data Use
The team worked closely with the CRVS Program to establish a
rapid mortality surveillance (RMS) system in the country, especially the facility-based system. Guidance was provided on how to conduct excess
mortality analysis, which data to use to establish the baseline, what to consider in terms of data quality, and how to interpret and present the
results. The results were presented to the National Mortality Surveillance Working Group, integrated into the COVID response led by the team at
the Emergency Operations Center, and will feed into the Public Health Emergency Management system.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Organizational Design & Analytics for Public Health Practice
A dedicated
Data Analytics Unit (DAU) with four staff was established in the Mumbai Health Department, with support from DIP. The DAU provides the necessary analytics to inform
decision-making by producing reports to support policy and guidelines development, as well as assisted with program evaluation for the Mumbai Public Health Department.
This included analysis ofnoncommunicable disease (NCD) data from the "My Family My Responsibility" application, analysis of monthly NCD program data from dispensaries
and peripheral hospitals, retrospective analysis of NCD data from 2017 to 2020, and analysis of data from a pilot project incorporating dietician visits for NCD patients.
The DAU also provided support for COVID-19 data analysis and lead the development of a report on the management of the COVID pandemic in Mumbai city. The report outlined the approach that Mumbai adopted to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and was disseminated widely among public health administrators and managers to guide response planning and mitigation for future epidemics/pandemics. The ongoing analysis of data also resulted in immediate action during the response.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision Makers
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: CRVS Data Use
In 2021, the DIP and CRVS teams connected with PUSKAPA, the Center
for Child Protection and Wellbeing, a research think tank at Universitas Indonesia. This partnership facilitated collaboration with the Ministry of
National Development Planning (Bappenas), the CRVS National Secretariat (Seknas AKPSH), the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), the Ministry of Home
Affairs (MoHA), and the Ministry of Health (MoH). In this phase, the DIP project is primarily focused on improving the analysis, production, and use
of vital statistics. The work efforts are closely aligned with the CRVS Program to undertake a review of the vital statistics business processes and
complete a legal review of the relevant legislature.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Kenya
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Organizational Design
The Data Impact team worked with 12 newly established Regional Health Observatories
to develop tools for decision-making and effective communication. These included support in the production of the first annual regional health reports for Oriental and
Fes-Meknes, development of a data dashboard for decision support and revision of the annual national health report.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data for Decision Makers
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
The DIP team introduced the National Statistics Institute (Instituto
Nacional de Estatística [INE]) to the guide on producing vital statistics and worked with them to produce the first national vital statistics report.
The report has helped to identify areas of improvement at the point of registration and processing the data.
The team is also working with INS to use COMSA data to develop specialized topical reports, specifically on the social determinants of mortality. This is unique to COMSA as other data sources may have data on the social determinants of health but not on mortality. This process provided the INS staff the opportunity to develop advanced conceptual statistical skills and software skills to produce vital statistics. Two analysis plans were produced, and the results will be disseminated in a mortality report.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data Analytics Workshop Develops
New Provincial Performance Reports Provincial Health Information Officers trained in Papua New Guinea
Data Impact delivered a training on Data Analytics in Papua New Guinea for provincial health information officers (PHIO) and managers from
all 22 provinces of Papua New Guinea, and staff from the Performance Monitoring and Research Branch, (PMRB) of the National Department of
Health (NDOH). Activities focused on how to communicate key findings from the data into statements about performance to support
decision-making at the senior level. Focusing on a subset of key indicators relevant at the provincial level from the yet-to-be-released
2017 Sector Performance Annual Review (SPAR), participants developed a provincial-level performance reports on various indictors and plans
for immediate distribution of their reports to decision-makers at provincial, district and facility levels.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data Reports
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
The DIP collaborates with the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC) to implement activities to support utilizing data for impact. During
second phase of the program, a D2P training was implemented that included participants from RBC, academic institutions and hospitals. The participants produced three policy briefs on stroke prevention, mental
health and adolescent reproductive health. The policy brief on stroke prevention was presented and approved at a senior management meeting and is being revised for publication in the RPHB.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data to Policy
Public Health Bulletin Development
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data for Decision Makers
The DIP team started working in Senegal early in 2020 with
the Ministry of Health and Social Action, the National Agency for Statistics and Demography, and the Ministry of Territorial Communities, Development
and Regional Planning. Activities had commenced at the start of the pandemic and support was shifted to supporting government’s COVID-19 response.
DIP collaborated with the Ministry to conduct the first two in-action reviews to ensure that lessons learned would be captured and integrated into response efforts to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first review focused on the initial management of COVID-19 cases and contacts and resulted in operational changes such as an increased reliance on community-based strategies. The second review included a focus on national leadership structures to the COVID-19 response and highlighted important communication and coordination challenges that were presented and shared within the response structures. This led to the development of a technical brief addressing communication within different facets of the pandemic response.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision-Makers
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
The HIS Unit in the Ministry of Health and Medical Services is DIP’s key partner in the
Solomon Islands. DIP supported the development of training needs assessment tools for the national HIS team. These tools were used to assess the skills gap in the
provincial analysts which was subsequently mitigated through training provided by the national HIS team, with support from the DIP team. The course curriculum included
reviewing DHIS2 outputs, producing health profiles, and disseminating quarterly provincial reports. More recently, the national HIS team took the lead in drafting the
quarterly provincial profiles with feedback and mentoring support from DIP. DIP made recommendations for revising the reporting template and for further training.
The DIP team also provided the HIS team with technical assistance to produce the annual health profiles for all ten provinces. These profiles are used by provincial
health directors in developing their Annual Operational Plans.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data to Policy
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Public Health Bulletin
The DIP collaborates with the National Institute for Communicable
Diseases (NICD) to implement activities. In the upcoming phase, trainings are planned in scientific communications and data to policy. NICD also
publishes a quarterly Public Health Surveillance Bulletin (PHSB) to disseminate information on communicable diseases and disease surveillance
activities. Partners are working together to support strategic activities to strengthen the PHSB and trainings will be provided focused on how to
write for public health bulletins, best practices in reviewing articles and data analysis.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data to Policy
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communication
Tanzania
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
DIP collaborated with Ministry of Health officials within the NCD Unit to produce
the country’s first analytical report on the “National Policy and Strategic Framework for Prevention and Control of Chronic Non-communicable Diseases 2010-2020”
(NCD Policy). This report quantitatively and qualitatively assessed the extent to which the implementation of the NCD Policy met its objective to reduce premature
mortality due to NCDs in Sri Lanka over the past decade. Findings and recommendations from the report informed the implementation of the next 10-year NCD Policy and
NCD-related programs in Sri Lanka.
Furthermore, six policy briefs that were produced through the D2P Program targeted NCD policy options. Many of the policy recommendations were included in the upcoming 10-year NCD policy and in some instances, programmatic changes have already been implemented. For example, a retinal screening program targeting primary care medical officers was initiated; the doctors were trained, and new equipment was purchased.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Institutional Data Use Policy
Journalist / Communication Staff Training
Thailand
Uganda
Vietnam
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Hidden
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data Reports
Vital Strategies has been working with Brazil’s Ministry of Health to expand Saúde Brasil (the annual review of the nation’s health) to include state-by-state health situation
assessments for the first time. To complement this expanded report, Vital Strategies used our Portal Development Platform to create a portal hosted on the Ministry of Health
website that allows users to obtain: 1) time trend and sub-group comparisons in a state for one specific cause of death and 2) the top 10 causes of death for each state.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data for Decision Makers
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Scientific Communications
Digital Data Solutions
Analytics for Public Health Practice
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Analytics for Public Health Practice
Colombia’s high-quality national Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) have been under-utilized as a data source for health analyses in the
country. Vital Strategies developed a hands-on 7-day workshop for 11 epidemiologists, statisticians and analysts representing Colombia’s Division of Epidemiology and Demography
and the National Statistics Office with the goal of teaching participants how to better understand, analyze and use the DHS. The workshop consisted of didactic presentations,
group work and individual exercises.
Participants were assigned three teams charged with conducting analysis to address a specific question of interest to the Ministry and prepare a publishable report in the three months after the workshop. The selected analysis projects were: factors associated with deferred maternity (inequalities in access to contraception), analysis of the internal quality of maternal mortality data for estimating maternal mortality ratios, and the relationship between sexual violence and fertility.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
Institutional Data Use Policy
Organizational Design
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Public Health Bulletin
Scientific Communications
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Analytics for Public Health Practice
Vital Strategies has worked with the National Statistics Office leadership to conceptualize the purpose, mandate, and objectives of the
unit and to share best practices for data integration, hosting, analysis and use. The observatory is establishing a new data management and analysis model that includes
administrative data, thematic surveys, and census data related to health, social characteristics, and living conditions. This system will allow the development of products,
both descriptive and analytical, and provide relevant input into government health and social policies including poverty and living conditions in Ecuador, maternal mortality
(a method for calculating and revising estimates of historic trends), adolescent pregnancy (a method for calculating and revising estimates of historic trends) and childhood
malnutrition prevalence estimates for small geographic areas.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Organizational Design
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: CRVS Data Use
The government has been steadily improving CRVS data collection but had focused less on building capacity toward effectively analyzing
and using the data to support public health policy and practice. To address this, Vital Strategies and the University of Melbourne delivered a CRVS Data Use Workshop for
41 technical analysts and communication staff from the Ghana Health Service (GHS), the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), and the Births and Deaths Registry (BDR). Areas
of focus of the workshop included basic and advanced analytic measures, completeness and data quality, life tables, comparing mortality and identifying inequalities, and
communication and dissemination of vital statistics.
On the last day of the workshop, a select team met to discuss quality and analytic concerns related to data sources for CRVS-related Sustainable Development Goal indicators and informed the government’s current indicator tracking plan.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Data for Decision Makers
Data to Policy
Institutional Data Use Policy
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data for Decision Makers
Vital Strategies worked for several months with Malawi to finalize the country’s National Health Indicators, after several years of work
by various partners to develop them. Vital Strategies: met with programs to finalize a list of national health indicators, definitions, data sources, baselines and targets;
mapped different data sources for each indicator to ensure better use of data and triangulation of data, as well as identifying duplication within the health information
system; defined the exact calculations to be used in the DHIS2 system, to ensure that the indicators displayed through DHIS2 are calculated correctly; and provided detailed
guidance on the interpretation of each indicator.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data for Decision Makers
Institutional Data Use Policy
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
The Data to Policy (D2P) program has been well established in Myanmar. This
commenced with two rounds of training that led to the production of 16 policy briefs , 14 of which led to policy change. The Program has now been institionalized
as 15 ministry staff (D2P alumni) completed a training of the trainer. These trained facilitators then applied their skills by running a locally-led D2P course
in Burmese. The Ministry's commitment to the program was also confirmed by the establishment of an official training facility in Pyin Oo Lwin. During the COVID-19
pandemic, the D2P alumni recognized the need to have evidence-based policies on COVID-19. The team proposed to the Union Minister the establishment of
“The COVID-19 Policy Analytics Group”(CPAG) that consists of members from various D2P cohorts and departments from MoHS. The Minister approved the formulation of
this group, whose aim is to analyze local COVID-19 related policies by evaluating their epidemiological impacts and social and economic outcomes in Myanmar.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
Data-driven Leadership Development
Data for Decision-Makers
Data Reports
Data to Policy
Digital Data Solutions
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: CRVS Data Use
The CRVS Data Analysis course, developed jointly by Vital Strategies and the University of Melbourne, was conducted in Spanish with two separate groups: regional
statisticians and regional epidemiologists. The 60 participants included staff from all 30 of Peru’s regions. The course (1.5 days for regional statisticians and 2.5
days for regional epidemiologists) was an applied training that promoted analysis and development of data products (reports or briefs) to guide public health
decision-making.
Region-specific mortality databases were provided to participants for analysis. In order to receive completion certificates, in the two months following the workshop, participants received mentoring to complete an analysis of mortality in their region. Epidemiologists also presented their findings and recommendations to their regional health directors.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Data for Decision Makers
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Data Reports
Digital Data Solutions
Organizational Design
Data to Policy
ACTIVITY IN DEPTH: Data to Policy
In the Philippines, the Department of Health sought to strengthen its department’s capacity to use data to drive policy through the
Data to Policy program. The policy recommendations made by one participant during the training, led to improved water quality throughout the country, and those made
by another are leading to better data collection on maternal mortality.
Water quality issue were analyzed and measures were recommended to improve drinking water quality. In response to the policy recommendations, officials, including those in the office of the Philippine President, supported measures to improve drinking water quality. Before these recommendations, water quality testing was limited to four biologic parameters and there was no active monitoring of test results, now water service providers test for 10 parameters that includes chemicals like arsenic.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
Analytics for Public Health Practice
CRVS Data Use
Journalist/Communication Staff Training
Organizational Design
Bloomberg Philanthropies | Data for Health Initiative
The Initiative, supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies is providing technical assistance to 20 low- and middle-income countries worldwide to improve public health data systems. The Data Impact Program, focusing on data use, is one of three Initiative components; the other two components focus on data collection and quality: improving civil registration and vital statistics systems and developing new tools for noncommunicable disease risk factor surveillance. Collaborating institutions in the Initiative are: Vital Strategies, CDC Foundation, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Global Health Advocacy Incubator, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the World Health Organization.
