Welcome to the DHIS2 Online Academy “Learner Voices” series! We interviewed the most active learners from the Online Academy, and asked them to share their thoughts about the courses they have taken, and how they have used their knowledge to build capacity, support their organizational goals, and grow their own careers.
In this post, you will hear from Mayamiko Mendamenda @Mayamiko , a strategic information officer at the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia.
To learn more about the Online Academy, click here.
Mayamiko Mendamenda, Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia
Q: Can we start by having you introduce yourself—your name, job title, and organization?
My name is Mayamiko Zoonadi Mendamenda. I am a Strategic Information Officer at the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ). We’re based in Lusaka and also work across the country; I’m at HQ right now.
Q: Tell us when you first started taking classes in the DHIS2 Online Academy, and why you started.
Yes, I remember it vividly. It was when I was an intern at the same organization where I’m working. On my first day my manager gave me a few tasks, and one of them was to go on the DHIS2 website and start doing the courses. I started around March 2021, and it was part of my tasks to learn DHIS2—to understand where it’s coming from, that it’s an electronic health record system and an open-source system. Those were my early stages of learning more about DHIS2, and it informed my work for the organization.
Q: You’ve now finished eight courses through the Academy Online. What motivated you to keep taking courses and keep learning?
I was very curious. I’m the type of person who likes to have a roadmap. Since I finished one, I was curious about the next—even if it wasn’t directly part of my work—because it would give me the opportunity to suggest things to my organization. For example: “Since we’re using tracker programs, can we also use event programs considering this use case?”
The various courses gave me a broader perspective on options. I thought of it as having tools under my tool belt, and depending on the problem I’d be solving, I could use anything I learned from the courses.
Q: Was it that learning path that kept you engaged and motivated, or something else?
Honestly, it was the learning path. I was curious to keep learning about DHIS2. So many countries were using it. The more I learned and joined the community—seeing the impact in different countries and different use cases—it gave me a hunger to keep growing. You never know when you’ll need this.
Q: Thinking about the course format—videos, exercises, certificates—were any features especially helpful for staying motivated?
Yes, all of the above. I liked that it was do it at your own pace. There are questionnaires to help you gauge hours. I liked the activities and assignments; they helped me apply my knowledge with hands-on experience. The cherry on top was getting the certificate to put on my CV/resume and on various platforms—“I’ve done this; this is a skill I’ve learned.” All these things helped me continue learning and enjoy the process.
Q: Tell us about your organization and the sector you work in. Are you supporting one specific program, and how is DHIS2 being used?
I work in the public health sector. We focus on various public health diseases—animal and human. It’s an array of things we do as an organization. I have worked on numerous projects and tasks at various points in time.
Q: The data you’re getting from DHIS2—how is it supporting your organization’s goals, and can you see the impact?
With the data we’re getting—aggregate or Tracker—it helps us reach organizational goals. For some studies or programs, we track things like HIV prevalence and whether viral load is reducing. For monthly reports, we can get aggregate data and pull it using tools like Data Visualizer in DHIS2. If we want to manipulate data further, we download to CSV or Excel for more analysis.
We’ve also been integrating DHIS2 with platforms like Power BI and Apache Superset. It’s contributing tremendously because we can track people and improve surveillance. For one program, since DHIS2 has a notification system, we’re trying to use it to track potential outbreaks of certain diseases in particular parts of the country.
Q: Give a specific example of something you learned in a course and how it helped you solve a work challenge.
A good example is a module explaining how DHIS2 is structured—what, where, when. Considering my role, I not only implement DHIS2; I also train people. Understanding “data element = what,” “organisation unit = where,” and “period = when” helps me convey to users that if you don’t pay attention to the when during data entry—like backdating something that should have been entered last week Monday—you can enter it incorrectly today.
This has helped me in implementation and in training. It also helped me write manuals better so users understand things simply. That “what, where, when” concept is simple but integral to DHIS2, especially for data entry and pulling data. It’s something I learned early on, continue to use, and have put into written guides for capacity building—whether for community health workers or clinicians.
Q: You’re writing manuals and providing training to different kinds of users. Is that a big part of your job, or something you began doing because of the Academy?
It’s a big part of my job, and the Academy pointed me to the community of practice. During COVID-19 I longed for community, and being part of it showed me many people have similar issues. I took on writing for my organization and beyond—articles on DHIS2, like integrating DHIS2 with Power BI and how to leverage both platforms; or how to quickly add a thousand organisation units via CSV instead of doing it manually.
These principles came from the Academy and from the DHIS2 documentation site. From there, you can find solutions to people’s problems.
Q: How has this knowledge—and ability to help colleagues—changed your team or organization?
It helps in many ways. If someone struggles, I can point them to resources in the Academy or documentation. My organization is big on training; we have many interns. My articles give them a roadmap that points back to DHIS2 resources—I’m not the author of this knowledge; DHIS2 has done so much already. I show how I’d start from scratch.
One of my first articles was where to start with DHIS2 and why DHIS2 is more than just a health tool. I give that to an intern, then walk them through various things.
Q: Since you started taking training and mastering DHIS2 skills, have your responsibilities or career opportunities changed?
In some ways, yes. It’s given me opportunities to present in different places. Depending on requests, I can quickly draft a presentation because I understand not only the technicalities of DHIS2 but also how to simplify them for a wider audience unfamiliar with the terminology. The training taught me to be technical and to deliver things simply.
Q: If you were recommending the DHIS2 Online Academy to a colleague or intern, what’s the single most important value?
That you can do it at your own pace. You can grasp concepts by applying them because the Academy has questions and a practical aspect—see mistakes and learn. You can go back and review what you’ve been learning. I still do that today.
Q: Some people struggle to complete online courses. Do you have practical suggestions to help them finish?
Accountability helped me. My supervisor made it something we spoke about every day. I had a month or two weeks to digest content, and every day I reviewed what I learned—“What have you done? Explain this concept.” That kept me on my toes.
Accountability is also embedded in the course: at the end of the introductory section there’s a component about joining the community and writing what you learned. If you apply yourself, you’ll notice that and contribute to the community of practice. That creates accountability—keep feeding it.
