Haiti Strategic Health Information Systems (HIS) Program Quarterly Report | January 1, 2021 – March 31, 2021

SISNU aims to integrate Haiti's health records across various digital and paper-based reporting platforms into a single system. The program supports MSPP under three focus areas: (a) strengthening SISNU by addressing information and technical gaps, (b) improving the quality of data, and (c) promoting better system governance and stewardship. This support contributes to the following two project objectives: Objective 1: Build the capacity of the Ministry of Health (MOH) to effectively implement, manage, oversee, and maintain a comprehensive, cross-sector health management information system, and Objective 2: Develop an e-health policy based on principles of host-country ownership, responsible use, and protection of information. During Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 Quarter Two (Q2), the Haiti HIS project made substantial progress toward project objectives with continuous delivery excellence. The project continued to work with the Unité d'Etudes et de Programmation (UEP) on the next steps in the development of a Haitian national digital health policy. The District Health Information Software (DHIS2) deployment method was improved, and the use of project resources was optimized in terms of server hosting cost and utilization. The project also continued DHIS2 data cleaning and created new indicators and dashboards for enhanced data quality. The integration effort of the Rapport mensuel de gestion logistique des intrants essentiels et stratégiques de santé (SIGL) to track data on essential drugs and laboratory inputs, including their purchasing, storage, and distribution, with a Smart Paper Technology (SPT) component to capture paper-based data that cannot be inputted electronically, was continued. The number of reported tuberculosis (TB) cases on the TB tracker rose from 7,356 cases at the beginning of 2018 to 53,893 by the end of FY 2021 Q2. The goal of HIS is to build the capacity of MSPP to take ownership of Haiti's comprehensive health information system: Système d'Information Sanitaire National Unique (SISNU). The project supports the MSPP to strengthen SISNU by integrating health records across digital and paper-based reporting platforms, addressing information and technical gaps, improving data quality, and promoting better system governance and stewardship. Through these continuous improvements, SISNU will provide the information needed by MSPP for better public health decision-making, helping the Government of Haiti to provide higher quality health care and treatment to the Haitian people. The project's technical team and UEP optimized the use of project resources both in terms of server hosting cost and utilization. The project used nine instances on the server: SINSU production, testing and database (3), Tracker production, testing and database (3), CS and COVID-19 dashboard production and database (2), MESI testing (1). The testing instance will allow testing of any new versions of DHIS-2 in a simulated live environment before putting them into production. With the docker, the deployment method has been improved by ensuring the reliability of any new version through real tests. The HIS technical team corrected the issue with SISNU's database; every time data was sent to SISNU via the DHIS2 web application programming interface (API), an error message appeared. The team also worked on improving the user experience of DHIS2 users by strengthening the DHIS2 platform, maintaining a standardized and unique database, and recognizing all the support applications used to collect and share Haitian health information. With more robust health data sets through SISNU, the MSPP can provide the evidence-based support needed to improve health policy decisions.