Pakistan | News | Review of national health information system in Pakistan, Islamabad, Pakistan, 24-28 July 2017

Review of national health information system in Pakistan, Islamabad, Pakistan, 24-28 July 2017

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National and provincial stakeholders meet to review national health information system in Pakistan 

9 August 2017 - To better understand the state of health information system (HIS) in Pakistan, WHO, in collaboration with the Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination, the Provincial Departments of Health and international consultants conducted a review of the national HIS aimed at strengthening and integrating the HIS to increase coordination and cooperation among provinces and development partners, strengthening transfer and sharing of knowledge and encouraging the use of evidence and information in policy-making. 

The review consisted of 2 parts: 2-day field visits to the provinces and a 2-day national workshop in Islamabad. Within the context of the devolution, workshop participants reviewed and consolidated findings from the provincial visits; and in working group sessions, participants evaluated existing governance structures, data sources, analytical and human resource capacities, and use of information for evidence-based making. A number of priority actions were recommended in order to strengthen HIS and improve reporting of core indicators and the health-related Sustainable Development Goal indicators. The results of the review will help the Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination and the Provincial Departments of Health to develop a prioritized roadmap to strengthen HIS and ensure that Pakistan is able to report the health situation and trends at the national, regional and international level. 

The review team was led by Dr Arash Rashidian, Director, Information, Evidence and Research, with support from the WHO Representative for Pakistan Dr Mohammad Assai Ardakani and also included WHO technical staff from the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean.