Design and implementation of a health management information system in Malawi: issues, innovations and results.

Abstract:

:As in many developing countries, lack of reliable data and grossly inadequate appreciation and use of available information in planning and management of health services were two main weaknesses of the health information systems in Malawi. Malawi began strengthening its health management information system with an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of existing information systems, sharing findings with all stakeholders. All were agreed on the need for reformation of various, vertical programme-specific information systems into a comprehensive, integrated, decentralized and action-oriented simple system. As a first step towards conceptualization and design of the system, a minimum set of indicators was identified and a strategy was formulated for establishing a system in the country. The design focused only on the use of information in planning, management and the improvement of quality and coverage of services. All health and support personnel were trained, employing a training of trainers cascade approach. Information management and use was incorporated into the pre-service training curriculum and the job description of all health workers and support personnel. Quarterly feedback, supportive supervision visits and annual reviews were institutionalized. Civil society organizations were involved in monitoring coverage of health services at local levels. A mid-term review of the achievements of the health information system judged it to be one of the best in Africa. For the first time in Malawi, the health sector has information by facility by month. Yet very little improvement has been noted in use of information in rationalizing decisions. The conclusion is that, no matter how good the design of an information system, it will not be effective unless there is internal desire, dedication and commitment of leadership to have an effective and efficient health service management system.

journal_name

Health Policy Plan

authors

Chaulagai CN,Moyo CM,Koot J,Moyo HB,Sambakunsi TC,Khunga FM,Naphini PD

doi

10.1093/heapol/czi044

subject

Has Abstract

pub_date

2005-11-01 00:00:00

pages

375-84

issue

6

eissn

0268-1080

issn

1460-2237

pii

czi044

journal_volume

20

pub_type

杂志文章
  • Dropping out of Ethiopia's community-based health insurance scheme.

    abstract::Low contract renewal rates have been identified as one of the challenges facing the development of community-based health insurance (CBHI) schemes. This article uses longitudinal household survey data gathered in 2012 and 2013 to examine dropout in the case of Ethiopia's pilot CBHI scheme. We treat dropout as a functi...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czu142

    authors: Mebratie AD,Sparrow R,Yilma Z,Alemu G,Bedi AS

    更新日期:2015-12-01 00:00:00

  • Scaling-up essential neuropsychiatric services in Ethiopia: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

    abstract:INTRODUCTION:There is an immense need for scaling-up neuropsychiatric care in low-income countries. Contextualized cost-effectiveness analyses (CEAs) provide relevant information for local policies. The aim of this study is to perform a contextualized CEA of neuropsychiatric interventions in Ethiopia and to illustrate ...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czv093

    authors: Strand KB,Chisholm D,Fekadu A,Johansson KA

    更新日期:2016-05-01 00:00:00

  • Targeting the poorest in a performance-based financing programme in northern Cameroon.

    abstract::Performance-Based Financing (PBF) is a promising approach to improve health system performance in developing countries, but there are concerns that it may inadequately address inequalities in access to care. Incentives for reaching the poor may prove beneficial, but evidence remains limited. We evaluated a system of t...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czv130

    authors: Flink IJ,Ziebe R,Vagaï D,van de Looij F,van 't Riet H,Houweling TA

    更新日期:2016-07-01 00:00:00

  • The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and Mexican nursing.

    abstract::In the context of nurse migration, experts view trade agreements as either vehicles for facilitating migration or as contributing to brain-drain phenomena. Using a case study design, this study explored the effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) on the development of Mexican nursing. Drawing result...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czq024

    authors: Squires A

    更新日期:2011-03-01 00:00:00

  • Investigating the remuneration of health workers in the DR Congo: implications for the health workforce and the health system in a fragile setting.

    abstract::The financial remuneration of health workers (HWs) is a key concern to address human resources for health challenges. In low-income settings, the exploration of the sources of income available to HWs, their determinants and the livelihoods strategies that those remunerations entail are essential to gain a better under...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czv131

    authors: Bertone MP,Lurton G,Mutombo PB

    更新日期:2016-11-01 00:00:00

  • The impact of the obstetrical risk insurance scheme in Mauritania on maternal healthcare utilization: a propensity score matching analysis.

    abstract::In Mauritania, obstetrical risk insurance (ORI) has been progressively implemented at the health district level since 2002 and was available in 25% of public healthcare facilities in 2015. The ORI scheme is based on pre-payment scheme principles and focuses on increasing the quality of and access to both maternal and ...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czz150

    authors: Ravit M,Ravalihasy A,Audibert M,Ridde V,Bonnet E,Raffalli B,Roy FA,N'Landu A,Dumont A

    更新日期:2020-05-01 00:00:00

  • Providing information on pregnancy complications during antenatal visits: unmet educational needs in sub-Saharan Africa.

    abstract:INTRODUCTION:Lack of information on the warning signs of complications during pregnancy, parturition and postpartum hampers women's ability to partake fully in safe motherhood initiatives. We assessed the extent to which women in 19 countries of sub-Saharan Africa recall receiving information about pregnancy complicati...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czp017

    authors: Nikiéma B,Beninguisse G,Haggerty JL

    更新日期:2009-09-01 00:00:00

  • Determinants of patient choice of medical provider: a case study in rural China.

    abstract::This study examines the factors that influence patient choice of medical provider in the three-tier health care system in rural China: village health posts, township health centres, and county (and higher level) hospitals. The model is estimated using a multinomial logit approach applied to a sample of 1877 cases of o...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/13.3.311

    authors: Yip WC,Wang H,Liu Y

    更新日期:1998-09-01 00:00:00

  • National and sub-national analysis of the health benefits and cost-effectiveness of strategies to reduce maternal mortality in Afghanistan.

    abstract:BACKGROUND:Afghanistan has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world. We assess the health outcomes and cost-effectiveness of strategies to improve the safety of pregnancy and childbirth in Afghanistan. METHODS:Using national and sub-national data, we adapted a previously validated model that simulat...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czs026

    authors: Carvalho N,Salehi AS,Goldie SJ

    更新日期:2013-01-01 00:00:00

  • Improving government health services through contract management: a case from Cambodia.

    abstract::Most government health facilities in Cambodia perform poorly, due to lack of funds, inadequate management and inefficient use of resources, but mostly due to poor motivation of staff. This paper describes contracting as a possible tool for Ministries of Health to improve health service delivery more rapidly than the m...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/18.1.74

    authors: Soeters R,Griffiths F

    更新日期:2003-03-01 00:00:00

  • Barriers to accessing benefits in a community-based insurance scheme: lessons learnt from SEWA Insurance, Gujarat.

    abstract::This paper seeks to examine barriers faced by members of a community-based insurance (CBI) scheme, which is targeted at poor women and their families, in accessing scheme benefits. CBI schemes have been developed and promoted as mechanisms to offer protection to poor families from the risks of ill-health, death and lo...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czj010

    authors: Sinha T,Ranson MK,Chatterjee M,Acharya A,Mills AJ

    更新日期:2006-03-01 00:00:00

  • Renewing membership in three community-based health insurance schemes in rural India.

    abstract::Low renewal rate is a key challenge facing the sustainability of community-based health insurance (CBHI) schemes. While there is a large literature on initial enrolment into such schemes, there is limited evidence on the factors that impede renewal. This article uses longitudinal data to analyse what determines renewa...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czw090

    authors: Panda P,Chakraborty A,Raza W,Bedi AS

    更新日期:2016-12-01 00:00:00

  • Did contracting effect the use of primary health care units in Pakistan?

    abstract::For many years, Pakistan has had a wide network of Basic Health Units spread across the country, but their utilization by the population in rural and peri-urban areas has remained low. As of 2004, in an attempt to improve the utilization and performance of these public primary healthcare facilities, the government has...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czx040

    authors: Malik MA,Van de Poel E,Van Doorslaer E

    更新日期:2017-09-01 00:00:00

  • Toward a grounded theory of why some immunization programmes in sub-Saharan Africa are more successful than others: a descriptive and exploratory assessment in six countries.

    abstract::The question of why some immunization programmes in sub-Saharan Africa are more successful than others is an intriguing one, but not one that is frequently raised or investigated. Borrowing techniques from both performance benchmarking and positive deviance inquiry, we explored this question in six countries. We first...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czn028

    authors: Naimoli JF,Challa S,Schneidman M,Kostermans K

    更新日期:2008-11-01 00:00:00

  • Drink, but don't drive? The alcohol industry's involvement in global road safety.

    abstract::Drink-driving is a major cause of global road traffic fatalities, yet few countries have laws that meet international best practices. One possible reason is the alcohol industry's opposition to meaningful policies that are perceived to directly threaten sales. Our primary objectives are to document alcohol industry in...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czaa097

    authors: Hoe C,Taber N,Champagne S,Bachani AM

    更新日期:2020-11-21 00:00:00

  • The patient costs of care for those with TB and HIV: a cross-sectional study from South Africa.

    abstract:Background:This study describes the post-diagnosis care-seeking costs incurred by people living with TB and/or HIV and their households, in order to identify the potential benefits of integrated care. Methods:We conducted a cross-sectional study with 454 participants with TB or HIV or both in public primary health car...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czw183

    authors: Mudzengi D,Sweeney S,Hippner P,Kufa T,Fielding K,Grant AD,Churchyard G,Vassall A

    更新日期:2017-11-01 00:00:00

  • 'One health' and development priorities in resource-constrained countries: policy lessons from avian and pandemic influenza preparedness in Zambia.

    abstract::'One World, One Health' has become a key rallying theme for the integration of public health and animal health priorities, particularly in the governance of pandemic-scale zoonotic infectious disease threats. However, the policy challenges of integrating public health and animal health priorities in the context of tra...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czu001

    authors: Mwacalimba KK,Green J

    更新日期:2015-03-01 00:00:00

  • Patient satisfaction with task shifting of antiretroviral services in Ethiopia: implications for universal health coverage.

    abstract::Formalized task shifting structures have been used to rapidly scale up antiretroviral service delivery to underserved populations in several countries, and may be a promising mechanism for accomplishing universal health coverage. However, studies evaluating the quality of service delivery through task shifting have la...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czu072

    authors: Asfaw E,Dominis S,Palen JG,Wong W,Bekele A,Kebede A,Johns B

    更新日期:2014-09-01 00:00:00

  • Policy entrepreneurs and structural influence in integrated community case management policymaking in Burkina Faso.

    abstract::Policy entrepreneurs are individuals who attempt to influence the policy process and its outcomes through their opportunistic or incremental actions. Their success in the policy-making process has been associated with the convergence of four factors: behavioural traits; institutional factors; network position and poli...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czv044

    authors: Shearer JC

    更新日期:2015-12-01 00:00:00

  • Private practitioners' communications with patients around HIV testing in Pune, India.

    abstract::Unlike any other disease so far, the 'exceptional' nature of HIV/AIDS has prompted debate about the necessity, but also the challenges, of regulating practitioner-patient communication around HIV testing. In India, the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) has adopted the guidelines of the World Health Organizatio...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czl021

    authors: Datye V,Kielmann K,Sheikh K,Deshmukh D,Deshpande S,Porter J,Rangan S

    更新日期:2006-09-01 00:00:00

  • Does household enrolment reduce adverse selection in a voluntary health insurance system? Evidence from the Ghanaian National Health Insurance System.

    abstract::In August 2003, the Ghanaian Government made history by implementing the first National Health Insurance System (NHIS) in sub-Saharan Africa. Within 2 years, over one-third of the country had voluntarily enrolled in the NHIS. To discourage households from selectively enrolling their sickest (high-risk) members, the NH...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czr057

    authors: Rajkotia Y,Frick K

    更新日期:2012-08-01 00:00:00

  • The effect of essential medicines programme on rational use of medicines in China.

    abstract:OBJECTIVE:Irrational use of medicines is a serious problem in China and has been the primary target of China's national essential medicines programme (NEMP). The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the NEMP on rational use of medicines in China. METHODS:A nationwide sample of 3 76 700 prescriptions written...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czv008

    authors: Gong Y,Yang C,Yin X,Zhu M,Yang H,Wang Y,Li Y,Liu L,Dong X,Cao S,Lu Z

    更新日期:2016-02-01 00:00:00

  • Inappropriate use of medicines and associated factors in Brazil: an approach from a national household survey.

    abstract::This article aims to describe the inappropriate use of medicines in the Brazilian urban population and to identify associated factors. We conducted a data analysis of a household survey carried out in Brazil in 2013-14. The sampling plan was done by clusters with representativeness of the urban population and large re...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czz038

    authors: Luiza VL,Mendes LVP,Tavares NUL,Bertoldi AD,Fontanella AT,Oliveira MA,Campos MR,PNAUM Group .

    更新日期:2019-12-01 00:00:00

  • The appropriateness of use of coronary angiography in Lebanon: implications for health policy.

    abstract:BACKGROUND:Lebanon, characterized by a free-market health care system, has one of the highest reported per capita rates of cardiac catheterization facilities and coronary angiographies in the world. The aim of this study is to evaluate the appropriateness of performance of coronary angiography procedures in Lebanon. M...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czn005

    authors: Sibai AM,Tohme RA,Saade GA,Ghanem G,Alam S,Lebanese Interventional Coronary Registry Working Group (LICOR).

    更新日期:2008-05-01 00:00:00

  • Lessons learned in using realist evaluation to assess maternal and newborn health programming in rural Bangladesh.

    abstract::Realist evaluation furnishes valuable insight to public health practitioners and policy makers about how and why interventions work or don't work. Moving beyond binary measures of success or failure, it provides a systematic approach to understanding what goes on in the 'Black Box' and how implementation decisions in ...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czv053

    authors: Adams A,Sedalia S,McNab S,Sarker M

    更新日期:2016-03-01 00:00:00

  • Intergovernmental health policy decisions in Brazil: cooperation strategies for political mediation.

    abstract::The advantages of established intergovernmental decision-making arenas for the implementation of health policies in decentralized settings are not well known. This paper presents the case of the joint health management committee, known as the Tripartite Committee, created to formalize intergovernmental decisions about...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czm004

    authors: Miranda AS

    更新日期:2007-05-01 00:00:00

  • The worse the better? Quantile treatment effects of a conditional cash transfer programme on mental health.

    abstract::Poor mental health is a pressing global health problem, with high prevalence among poor populations from low-income countries. Existing studies of conditional cash transfer (CCT) effects on mental health have found positive effects. However, there is a gap in the literature on population-wide effects of cash transfers...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czaa079

    authors: Ohrnberger J,Fichera E,Sutton M,Anselmi L

    更新日期:2020-11-20 00:00:00

  • Review of quality assessment tools for family planning programmes in low- and middle-income countries.

    abstract::Measuring and tracking the quality of healthcare is a critical part of improving service delivery, clinic efficiency and health outcomes. However, no standardized or widely accepted tool exists to assess the quality of clinic-based family planning services in low- and middle-income countries. The objective of this lit...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章,评审

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czw123

    authors: Sprockett A

    更新日期:2017-03-01 00:00:00

  • Supporting mental health in South African HIV-affected communities: primary health care professionals' understandings and responses.

    abstract::How do practitioners respond to the mental distress of HIV-affected women and communities? And do their understandings of patients' distress matter? The World Health Organization (WHO) along with advocates from the Movement for Global Mental Health (MGMH) champion a primary mental health care model to address burgeoni...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czu092

    authors: Burgess RA

    更新日期:2015-09-01 00:00:00

  • Evidence on access to medicines for chronic diseases from household surveys in five low- and middle-income countries.

    abstract::The 2011 United Nations (UN) General Assembly Political Declaration on Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) brought NCDs to the global health agenda. Essential medicines are central to treating chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes. Our study aimed to quantify access to essential med...

    journal_title:Health policy and planning

    pub_type: 杂志文章

    doi:10.1093/heapol/czu107

    authors: Vialle-Valentin CE,Serumaga B,Wagner AK,Ross-Degnan D

    更新日期:2015-10-01 00:00:00