Capacity Project human resources information systems (HRIS) team leader Dykki Settle recently presented the iHRIS software at two international conferences dedicated to health information systems (HIS): the World Health Organization’s “Framework for Interoperability for Public Health Tools Meeting” in Geneva, Switzerland, and the joint Health Informatics Association of South Africa and OpenMRS regional conference in Durban, South Africa.

The first meeting focused on the need and opportunities for integrating national HIS tools, while the second forum emphasized facility-based clinical HIS, especially patient care and records management. Participants in the Geneva workshop lauded the Project’s disciplined software development approach and recognized the iHRIS software as a best practice. Discussions from that conference regarding interoperability have already led to work in Tanzania geared toward integrating the iHRIS software with the District Health Information System.

Additional conversations are planned with a variety of health informatics development teams to align activities in countries where the Project is working to strengthen HRIS.

August 2008