gmeltdown

During the month of August 2011, one of the many developments in the national Health and ICT scene was the launch of Kenya's National e-Health Strategy 2011-2017. The vision of the strategy is “ To develop efficient, accessible, equitable, secure and consumer friendly health care services enabled by ICT ”. The strategy also outlines a mission to “ promote and deliver efficient healthcare services to Kenyans and consumers beyond our borders, using ICT ”. Hon. Peter Anyang Ngong'o – Kenya's Minister for Medical Services officially launched the strategy on 11th August 2011. Hon. Peter Anyang' Nyongo - Kenya's Minister for Medical Services Calling for a paradigm shift The newly launched strategy seeks to set in motion a process of compensating for the shortage of skilled health care professionals by harnessing ICT for improved healthcare delivery. It also aims to tap into the latent capacity of healthcare consumers to play an active role in the pr...

A week ago I wrote about the then imminent launch of the Standards and Guidelines for electronic medical record systems in Kenya . The document was signed by both the Director of Medical Services (Dr. Francis M. Kimani) and the Director of Public Health and Sanitation (Dr. Shahnaz Kassam Shari). Another week has passed and the document has since been officially launched. It was the Director of Medical Services who launched the document on 3rd November at the Kenyatta International Conference Center on behalf of the Government of Kenya. It has been argued that the existence of two Ministries of Health in Kenya has not been worked well for the country. However, it should be reassuring to note that the document is a product of collaborative efforts between the Ministry of Medical Services and the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation. National AIDS and STI Control Program (NASCOP) which is placed in the Public Health and Sanitation Ministry was a key contributor to the document’s de...

An Electronic Medical Record (EMR) is defined as a computerized  medical record created in an organization that delivers care, such as a hospital and doctor's surgery - (in wikipedia) . EMR systems, information systems used in health facilities to manage EMRs have remained a popular topic of discussion among Kenya's eHealth initiative's over the last five years.   A knowledge-based economy A nation wide adoption of EMR systems in Kenya promises to increase effectiveness of the national health care system from policy making, to financing,  and to service  delivery at health facilities. This is by strengthening the practice of knowledge management in health care. Among other things, it would support evidence-informed decision making at the various service delivery levels of the national health system.   A health care system in Kenya with efficient knowledge management and decision making will not only create a healthier and more economically productive Na...

Kenya has a brand new Strategic Plan for Health Information Systems (HIS) covering the period 2009 to 2014. The new strategic plan also brings along a HIS policy to guide its implementation. The two documents attempt to deliberately address the aspirations of the National Health Strategic Plan II , the Health Sector Monitoring and Evaluation Framework and the country's Vision 2030. The documents were prepared with the technical and financial support from the Health Metrics Network (HMN) and UK's Department for International Development (DfID). Click here to access the two documents on Google Docs Notably, among government dependent services, the health sector has been at the fore front adopting Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for improved service delivery to Kenyans. The progressiveness on the part of the health sector may be appreciated as a result of good leadership within the government. The same might also be dismissed as a mere side effect of immense do...