Global eHealth · Creating an evaluation and research strategy and an evidence base for eHealth systems to improve the quality of data collection and care in low and middle income settings

Creating an evaluation and research strategy and an evidence base for eHealth systems to improve the quality of data collection and care in low and middle income settings

Healthcare in low and middle income countries (LMICs) is undergoing rapid change allowing treatment of a widening range of diseases. The needs of the disadvantaged, underserved and remote communities are increasingly recognized, and there is an emphasis on surveillance to detect infectious disease outbreaks, measuring and improving quality of care, and reducing preventable adverse events including medical errors. The timely and accurate collection, analysis and use of health information is at the core of all these initiatives, and Electronic Health Information Systems (eHealth systems) including mHealth are becoming essential components of successful health systems worldwide. The Researcher has led several multi-national eHealth projects in LMICs for over 15 years including developing and implementing electronic medical record systems (EMRs). In 2004 he co-founded and currently co-leads the OpenMRS open source Electronic Medical Record (EMR) system [openmrs.org] now deployed in more than 60 LMICs. He supported the initial roll out of OpenMRS in Rwanda, now in over 300 clinics. Previously he had led many innovative evaluation studies of eHealth systems demonstrating impacts on clinical care processes and access to laboratory results, including the first large randomized controlled trial of a laboratory information system in a LMIC to show a clinical benefit for patients. The objectives of the Fellowship were to: (1) evaluate with a randomized controlled clinical trial the clinical and health service impacts/benefits of an eHealth systems in an LMIC, to evaluate system’s performance and use, and the costs of developing and implementing it. (2) to improve the quality and use of clinical data from EMR systems for care and research in both the EU and in LMICs, focusing on chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes, and (3) to create a Global eHealth group at Leeds University to strengthen European and Global capacity in eHealth development, implementation and evaluation. The Fellowship built on the innovative and internationally recognized work of the Fellow, in collaboration with the supervisor Professor Jeremy Wyatt a world leading expert on eHealth evaluation at the University of Leeds, UK.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union