AFRO-NETS> Namibia Health Info. System Description on WWW

["Jeremy B. Clark" <jbclark@iafrica.com.na>]

Namibia Health Info. System Description on WWW
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Apologies for co-posting to subscribers to HIF-NET, RHINO, and 
HELINA-L, who will likely receive a similar message.

Namibia's national health information system, or HIS, gathers routine 
data on patient and client services, out-and in-patient diagnoses, 
etc. from all 340 government health facilities each month using a 
standard set of manually-completed tally sheets and summary report 
forms. Data from the summary forms is entered into a computerized 
system at one of 35 health districts, then passed along by diskette 
or Internet e-mail to regional and national levels. Data can be proc-
essed/analyzed into reports at the district level, or at regional or 
national levels (dis)aggregated to any desired level from a facility 
to the entire country.

A summary description of the Namibia HIS has been added to the Na-
mibia Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) Web Site. The 
tally sheets, summary report forms and register formats can be viewed 
on line and/or downloaded (ZIPped MS Excel format). The system's in-
struction manual and (inpatient discharge diagnosis) coding lists may 
also be downloaded (ZIPped MS Word) format.

The Namibia MoHSS offers this Web page and downloads with the hope 
that the work that has been done on HIS development in Namibia over 
the past ten years may be of benefit to other countries that are pon-
dering or actively developing a similar system, and that they may be 
able to adopt or adapt forms or procedures or protocols and, thus, 
reduce the all-too-frequent energy and expense of "re-inventing the 
wheel". Some of the data or the procedures may be unique or applica-
ble only to Namibia, but the vast majority of the data gathered and 
reports that are available from the Namibia system could well be of 
interest/use anywhere in the world.

It could be useful if other countries were to post similar details of 
their HIS on their Web sites, if they have them, or on a central site 
offered by an organization that has an interest in this topic.

The Namibia HIS description page is:
http://www.healthnet.org.na/grnmhss/htm/hisnewbrief1.htm

If you'd care to visit other features of the Namibia MoHSS Web Site, 
its URL is 
http://www.healthnet.org.na/mhssindex1.htm

Regards,

Jeremy B. Clark, MPH 
Namibia Ministry of Health and Social Services 
Information Systems Advisor 
Windhoek, Namibia
Tel: +264-61-203-2825 (W)
Tel: +264-61-248-995  (H)
Cell +264-81-127-3421
Fax: +264-61-248-995
mailto:jbclark@iafrica.com.na

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