This abstract has been accepted at the 2024 DHIS2 Annual Conference
Ethiopia’s transformative integration of rehabilitation data into DHIS2
Global demand for rehabilitation services continues to grow due to aging populations and the rise of non-communicable diseases and injuries. Approximately 1 in 5 people (21 million) in Ethiopia have health conditions that could benefit from rehabilitation services, which enable optimal functioning, improve quality of life, and increase productivity. However, these services are often inadequate or inaccessible in low- and middle-income countries and lack high-quality data that would aid in monitoring quality of care, allocating resources, and advocating for rehabilitation as an essential component of Universal Health Coverage. To address this, the Ministry of Health of Ethiopia (MOH) is supporting the integration of rehabilitation into the existing DHIS2 platform to collect and report data on rehabilitation services. The MOH took a collaborative and phased approach to integrating rehabilitation in their existing health information system where they 1) assessed the capacity of five hospitals and rehabilitation centers where the rehabilitation module would be piloted; 2) prioritized six rehabilitation and assistive technology (AT) service-related indicators through an in-depth consultative process with global and local experts; 3) developed standardized manual data collection and reporting tools; 4) trained rehabilitation service providers to use an aggregate DHIS2 tool to collect and report on the indicators monthly; 5) tested the data collection and reporting tools and validated the final list of indicators; 6) customized the data elements and indicators with validation rules on DHIS2; 7) developed a data set with rehabilitation and AT service data elements and indicators on DHIS2 and tested for functionality; 8) conducted a final training for service providers, program managers and data personnel on DHIS2 and 9) initiated data reporting in DHIS2 for rehabilitation information management. Due to the initial pilot’s success, the implementation of the rehabilitation module has since expanded to an additional 10 facilities in Ethiopia. The integration of rehabilitation in the existing DHIS2 platform is supporting decision-makers at the national, sub-national and facility levels to make evidence-based decisions to improve the accessibility and effectiveness of rehabilitation services at all levels of care. Ethiopia is one of the pioneer countries to champion this integration of rehabilitation indicators into DHIS2 and has become a model for other low- and middle-income countries looking to strengthen rehabilitation service planning and delivery through data and evidence-driven policies and programs.
Primary Author: Ayele Tiyou ADEB
Keywords:
DHIS2, RIS (rehabilitation information system), MoH, UHC (universal health coverage), ATS (Assistive Technology Service)
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