The 12th Annual Bay Area International Health Interest Group Conference, “Global Health: Translating Ideas into Action” took place on Sunday, March 7th at UC San Francisco, Parnassus campus. The conference included plenary speakers, breakout sessions, NGO exhibits, and poster presentations. There were over 40 poster submissions covering topics that range across health sciences disciplines and that span the globe. Posters have been grouped into four categories: Evaluation, Policy, Program Implementation, and Research. The complete packet of abstracts (PDF) is available for download.

eHealth Nigeria won 2nd place in the Project Implementation category, competing against students whom already had their PhD, MD, and MBA’s. eHealth Nigeria was the only group in any category representing the University of California, Santa Cruz and was one of the only featuring an undergraduate. The poster covered the “Instant EMR”, power issues, training and capacity building, and our mobile phone aspect.

Download the full Poster Here

Abstract:
In Northern Nigeria, a deteriorating health system has resulted in one of the World’s highest rates of maternal and infant deaths. This dire situation is amplified by the lack of an effective health information system, leaving hospitals and clinics to make decisions about patient care with only uninformed guesses about medical history and access to unreliable patient registers and reports.

In 2009, GIIP implemented an electronic medical records system using OpenMRS for the Shehu Idris College of Health Science and Technology (SICHST) in Kaduna, Nigeria. The three-month process resulted in electronic forms for all clinical areas, greatly reduced data duplication and a monthly reporting process that takes only seconds. This system provides not only access to the first patient-based health indicators in Nigeria but is also an example of the potential to overcome the harsh computing environment in Nigeria to implement eHealth systems that will improve the quality of care for at-risk women and children.

To continue improving the health outcomes of women and children through the use of effective health information systems, the current goals are:

* To expand the project scope to reach more patients by installing additional systems in high maternal mortality areas.
* To increase usability of the systems with touch screens, patient id cards, and mobile OpenMRS devices for community health workers.
* To create reference systems and eHealth Express ‘Kits’ for the easy deployment of maternal, child and reproductive health information systems.
* To develop training and curriculum for the SICHST as well as staff at supporting NGOs and clinics.

Testing and proving the feasibility of an integrated eHealth system utilizing mobile devices is a vital next step to increasing access to health care services, reducing unnecessary mortality and providing decision-making support to clinicians and public health professionals.