SEATTLE — Too often, people look at solving health issues as a matter of finding the right cures or preventative measures. People wonder about new vaccines or new forays into medical research. However, a lack of accurate data provided by countries on poverty-related health issues poses an obstacle to providing aid for people in need.
According to the Health Data Collaborative, only 50 percent of countries gave the World Health Organization (WHO) data on causes of death in 2014. If aid organizations are not even informed on what is causing death in countries, then figuring out how to stop the death is difficult.
The Health Data Collaborative is improving the collection of reliable data. The Collaborative was formed March 9 of this year, and their first act was to establish 100 core health indicators that countries can report data on. By creating these indicators, countries can streamline the data that they report, allowing them to focus on providing more relevant data on poverty-related health issues.
Some of these core indicators include life expectancy at birth, maternal mortality ratio and incidence rates of various types of cancer. Along with these indicators, the Collaborative also provides specifics, such as the exact definition of these indicators and how countries should go about measuring or estimating them.
The Collaborative also releases monthly updates so that people can track the progress they are making. For example, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has recently begun to utilize DHIS 2, which is a software program that can track health-related data.
DHIS 2 is a tool that allows people to visualize the distribution and severity of various health related issues. Oftentimes, without access to Internet and a computer, data on health has to first be written by hand. DHIS 2 compiles this data into a more accessible and better-organized format. The program is also practical in its application as it works across numerous devices and can work without Internet connection.
DHIS 2 is in use across 47 countries, and has proven to be effective. Ghana has been using the program since 2012, and according to the DHIS 2 website, more than 1000 people are admitted to hospitals across the country each day as a result of the data provided by DHIS.
Other organizations are also working on improving data collection. PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) focuses its efforts on combating AIDS. PEPFAR has been working to map out the distribution of AIDS in countries and has been publishing its results for use by other organizations. They also provide spreadsheets outlining their findings across distinct regions within countries, and they have made it a goal to publish data every quarter year so that people can be up to date with health data.
PEPFAR has called the emphasis on better data gathering methods a “data revolution.” Organizations such as PEPFAR and the Health Data Collaborative are working on this lesser-known aspect of health care to provide foreign aid. Hopefully, the data revolution will continue to improve the ability to respond to poverty-related health issues.
– Edmond Kim
Photo: Flickr