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  • About
    • About DHIS2
      Learn about what DHIS2 is and how it fits into the global HISP movement for strengthening health information systems
      What is DHIS2?
      • Our Vision & Partners Menu icon
        Our history, purpose, vision, and partners
      • Impact Menu icon
        Where and how DHIS2 makes a difference
      • Research Menu icon
        DHIS2 and the Health Information Systems Programme
      • Global Network Menu icon
        Our HISP network of regional DHIS2 experts
      • News & Events Menu icon
        DHIS2 updates, media, and upcoming events
      • Community Forum Menu icon
        Ask questions and share insights in our online community
      • Careers Menu icon
        Come join the DHIS2 team
      • Contact Menu icon
        Connect with us
  • Features
    • Software Features
      Discover how DHIS2 supports collection, validation, analysis, visualization, and sharing of data
      What can DHIS2 do?
      • Data Management & Analytics Menu icon
        Manage and analyze data with charts, graphs, maps, and dashboards
      • Individual Data Menu icon
        Using Tracker for individual-level / case-based data
      • Mobile Data Entry Menu icon
        Online and offline data capture with the DHIS2 Android App
      • Customizable Platform Menu icon
        Promoting adaptation and innovation with open-source technology
      • Metadata Packages Menu icon
        Templated DHIS2 configurations based on global standards
      • Security Menu icon
        Protecting the security and privacy of your data
      • Integration & Interoperability Menu icon
        Integrating DHIS2 with other tools and systems
      • Software Roadmap Menu icon
        Explore features and fixes in upcoming DHIS2 software releases
  • Resources
    • DHIS2 Resources
      Explore resources for starting, scaling, managing and maintaining a DHIS2 project
      How can you get started with DHIS2?
      • Downloads Menu icon
        Resources for downloading and installing DHIS2
      • Documentation Menu icon
        Guidance to help plan, implement, maintain, and use DHIS2
      • Support Menu icon
        Options for getting support for your DHIS2 project
      • Hosting Menu icon
        Resources for hosting a DHIS2 database
      • Developer Resources Menu icon
        Information on DHIS2 core software and app development
      • Demo Menu icon
        Try out DHIS2 with our interactive demo databases
      • Training Menu icon
        Develop your skills with the DHIS2 Academy
  • Impact
    • DHIS2 In Action
      See how DHIS2 is being used worldwide to help manage programs in health, education, and more
      How does DHIS2 make a difference?
      • WHO Toolkit Menu icon
        Standardized WHO programs for HIV, Malaria, TB, and more
      • COVID-19 Menu icon
        Deploying DHIS2 for COVID-19 surveillance & vaccine delivery
      • Tracker Menu icon
        Using DHIS2 for individual-level data collection and analysis
      • Android Menu icon
        Extending program reach with mobile data entry
      • Education Management Menu icon
        DHIS2 as an Education Management Information System (EMIS)
      • Immunization Menu icon
        Improving immunization programs with DHIS2
      • Logistics Menu icon
        Integrated logistics and stock management with DHIS2
      • Impact Stories Menu icon
        Real stories about how DHIS2 makes a difference around the world
  • Academy
    • DHIS2 Academy
      Develop your DHIS2 skills and build the capacity of your team with DHIS2 Academies
      How can you develop DHIS2 skills?
      • Schedule Menu icon
        Upcoming Academy trainings, webinars, and events
      • Fundamentals Menu icon
        Learn the basics of DHIS2 with our free online courses
      • Level 1 Menu icon
        Develop your core skills with regional Level 1 Academies
      • Level 2 Menu icon
        Build specialized skills with international DHIS2 experts
      • In-Country Academies Menu icon
        Support for national and sub-national trainings through local partners
      • Annual Conference Menu icon
        Meet and share knowledge at our annual gathering of DHIS2 experts
      • Training Material Menu icon
        Browse our free library of training materials
  • COVID-19
    • COVID-19 Response
      DHIS2 offers standardized tools that support coronavirus surveillance & vaccine delivery
      How is DHIS2 used against COVID-19?
      • Surveillance Toolkit Menu icon
        Tools to deploy DHIS2 for COVID surveillance & response
      • Vaccine Delivery Toolkit Menu icon
        Leverage DHIS2 tools to support COVID vaccine distribution
      • Digital Certificates Menu icon
        Secure vaccine and test result certificates using DHIS2 data
      • Training Material Menu icon
        Quick guides, documentation, and training material
      • Success Stories Menu icon
        Examples of innovative uses of DHIS2 for COVID-19 surveillance & vaccination
      • Support & Discussion Menu icon
        Ask questions and get support on using DHIS2 for COVID-19
  • Education
    • DHIS2 for Education
      Learn how countries can extend the DHIS2 software platform from the health sector to the education sector for the collection, analysis, visualization, and use of data from institutions of learning
      How can DHIS2 be used for education management?
      • Overview Menu icon
        Explore the key features and use cases of DHIS2 for Education
      • Projects & Partnerships Menu icon
        Learn about our collaboration with international education partners
      • Pilot Countries Menu icon
        See how countries are using DHIS2 to manage education data
      • News & Updates Menu icon
        Read updates on DHIS2 for Education projects and events
      • Community Forum Menu icon
        Ask questions and share insights in our online community

The DHIS2 Annual Conference will take place from 12-15 June! Learn More & Register

Going paperless for COVID-19 testing in Rwanda with DHIS2 Android Capture App

Rwanda’s Ministry of Health uses DHIS2 on tablet and mobile devices to make their COVID-19 sample collection, reception and results distribution process entirely paperless from start to finish

The DHIS2 Android Capture App supports mobile data entry at Rwanda’s drive-through testing centers 

As the COVID-19 pandemic approached Africa, Rwanda convened a task force to plan and coordinate the country’s response. This group included subject matter experts from various ministries and other stakeholders. Together, they developed a COVID-19 response plan featuring several local innovations, including an entirely paperless process for screening and testing suspected cases and sharing the subsequent test results. By employing tablets for the collection of patient data at the point of testing, Rwanda has been able to set up mobile testing centers that can be deployed to key sites around the country.

Decades of DHIS2 experience are the basis for effective COVID-19 response

DHIS2 has been used as Rwanda’s Health Management Information System at a national scale since 2012, and HISP Rwanda serves a key role in supporting and expanding the Rwandan DHIS2 system, and in building capacity both locally and throughout the East and Southern Africa region. In addition to hosting regional DHIS2 Academies, HISP Rwanda also helps coordinate training for Rwanda’s DHIS2 users.

Rwanda also has years of experience using DHIS2 for disease surveillance–their TB Surveillance system has been operational since 2013–and they have used DHIS2 Tracker to collect patient-level data since 2016. Because of this, they were well positioned to respond quickly and effectively to COVID-19 on a national scale. From the beginning of the country’s lockdown in March 2020, they deployed a customized DHIS2 Tracker module to collect data from all health centers and hospitals, both public and private, which feed information upward to the district and national level.

Going paperless: Using tablets to make processes faster, safer, and more efficient

One issue that Rwanda’s COVID-19 task force needed to address quickly was how to minimize the risk of infection among health personnel involved in screening, testing, and caring for patients with suspected or confirmed coronavirus infections while also reducing the time from sample collection to results distribution. Among the vectors they discussed were the paper forms that were used to record data on individual cases, and particularly paperwork related to sample collection and processing, which passes through the hands of lab professionals at several stages from sample collection to lab testing and to results reporting. The solution they arrived at was to use the DHIS2 Android Capture App, replacing the physical forms with an entirely electronic data collection system.

Data entry with DHIS2 Android App.

The field sample collection program uses more than 300 Android tablets, which were distributed to sample collectors, quarantine sites, and health facilities around the country. Using these tablets and the DHIS2 Android Capture App, the system allows them to work offline as the health workers enter data directly into custom forms, and the date entered immediately syncs with the national HMIS database whenever internet is available. The national laboratory system was also set up with DHIS2 on their workstations for sample reception, processing and results return. DHIS2 generates a unique ID which is assigned to each sample at the point of collection, and which is used as sample ID for testing and sample identification. Once the tests are processed, results are automatically sent out by DHIS2 via SMS.

The benefits of this system have been immediately apparent. For example, in addition to using the data to support existing testing and reporting workflows, the lab facilities also use DHIS2 through monitoring screens to track the quantity of incoming data samples, so that they can adjust their staffing accordingly in advance, ensuring that they have appropriate testing capacity based on expected test volume. Because the system is now decentralized, with DHIS2 used for each step of the process, the overall time from sample collection to processing to results reporting has decreased significantly, and the testing system has become more efficient. In May 2020, as many as 2,800 samples were collected and input into the DHIS2 system in one day. In July, Rwanda launched a program of mobile testing centers, through which medical personnel equipped with the DHIS2 Android Capture App on mobile devices could deploy to potential pandemic hotspots around the country for rapid data collection and pandemic response.

A paperless process makes it easier to collect a large number of samples for testing. (Image credit CNBC Africa)

Support from HISP Rwanda, DHIS2 developers, and the global network

HISP Rwanda has years of experience supporting DHIS2 deployment in Rwanda. This was especially crucial as the COVID-19 program was Rwanda’s first large-scale deployment of DHIS2 on mobile and tablet devices, where configuration and testing of the DHIS2 Android Capture App was a key step. They also established a national monitoring room, where local DHIS2 experts ensure that data from all mobile devices is properly synchronized with the central database, and intervening as needed in the rare cases where technical issues arise. They have also been in direct contact with DHIS2 Android developer team throughout the process, giving feedback that has led to bug fixes and enhancements in app patch releases that were released on a rapid cycle to support COVID-19 implementations.

HISP Rwanda has also collaborated with partner groups in the HISP network, and they have provided implementation support to health authorities in other countries in the region–both alone and in partnership with HISP Tanzania and HISP Uganda–such as Sudan and Madagascar.

Watch a video from CNBC Africa to learn more about Rwanda’s use of technology to combat COVID-19, including mobile data entry with the DHIS2 Android Capture App:

Learn more about HISP Rwanda on their website

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