GIS INTEGRATION IN HEALTH
CASE OF RWANDA
Uwayezu Gilbert and Murenzi Daniel
GIS, a tool deployed by Rwanda HIV/ AIDS program to support decision
making: the case of TRACnet System.
“Monitoring of drug supplies by facility, district and region to prevent
shortages and stock-outs”
• When you don’t know where something is happening on time , it is not
easy to give an appropriate solution or make a rapid intervention.
• GIS is helping us in understanding the “where” problem.
• To respond to an effective management of Anti-Retroviral drugs and be
able to monitor on time the stock level at health facilities level; there is a
need of having a tool which allows the central level to access the a
information on ARVs stock level in order to provide a rapid response in
terms of drugs distribution in case there is a shortage or stock-out at a
particular ART Health Facility.
• We are using Geographic Information System (GIS) as a tool with other
processes that captures, stores, analyzes, manages, and presents data
that is linked to location contributes to respond to those needs
mentioned.
• Our logic frame: Applying GIS technology to process HIV disease strategic
information to support decision-making and guide work processes (public
health actions) in order to accomplish the program mission.
• GIS is helping our Malaria control Unit in
malaria surveillance as an approach to predict
malaria epidemics, control malaria vectors.....
GIS future areas of action for Ministry of Health
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Determining geographic distribution of diseases
Analyzing spatial and temporal trends
Mapping populations at risk
Assessing resources allocation
Planning and targeting interventions
Monitoring diseases and interventions over
time.
• GIS integration into EMR.
• Tracking Trends in Health Care with GIS
Challenges
• No enough skilled personnel to implement GIS
projects in health sector.
• No tools to run GIS applications (Software and
Hardware).
• Getting spatial data is still an issue…(too
expensive).