Abstract :

Despite stringent lockdown measures to curb the spread of the 2019 Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), India remains vulnerable to an uncontrolled rise in the number of cases and deaths. Furthermore, in spite of the high number of recorded cases, the actual case counts may be much higher due to poor data reporting of probable and confirmed cases of COVID-19 from all of India’s states. Being a populous country with the potential to become the world’s COVID-19 epicenter, it should be the Indian government’s top priority to strengthen India’s health information system (HIS) to support their infectious disease response.

To ensure that this paper is guided by current research on India’s HIS performance, a search strategy was developed on Ovid MEDLINE using database-specific subject headings and text words. The search terms used included: “health information systems” AND “India” AND “COVID-19” OR “Coronavirus.”

Most district level COVID-19 information management is still paper-based, and with India’s vast terrain, this approach is prone to data compilation errors. Furthermore, India’s fragmented HIS has led to ineffective collaboration between COVID-19 response agencies at the central, state, and district levels, thereby creating barriers pertaining to the compilation and coordination of COVID-19 data.

Investing in the use of technology is a viable approach to strengthen the country’s HIS performance during an infectious disease pandemic. To address the challenges associated with India’s fragmented HIS, the government is encouraged to implement a national regulatory body to monitor health information inputs and outputs.

---

Keywords :

COVID-19, Health Information Systems, India, Infectious Disease, pandemic

---

References :

1. Venkata-Subramani M, Roman J. The Coronavirus Response in India – World’s Largest Lockdown. Am J Med Sci. 2020; 360(6):742-748.
2. Dong E, Du H, Gardner L. An interactive web-based dashboard to track COVID-19 in real time. Lancet Infect Dis. 2020; 20(5):533-4.
3. Chatterjee P. Is India missing COVID-19 deaths? Lancet. 2020; 396(10252):657.
4. World Health Organization (WHO). Monitoring the building blocks of health systems: a handbook of indicators and their measurement strategies. Geneva: WHO; 2010. Accessed December 16, 2020. https://www.who.int/healthinfo/systems/WHO_MBHSS_2010_full_web.pdf

5. Bodavala R. Evaluation of Health Management Information System in India Need for Computerized Databases in HMIS. Boston: Harvard School of Public Health; 1998. Accessed December 16, 2020. https://cdn1.sph.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/114/2012/10/rp176.pdf
6. Mohan N, Shewade HD, Shilpa DM, et al. Electronic health and medical records for comprehensive primary healthcare in India. Natl Med J India. 2019 Nov 1; 32(6):373.
7. World digital ranking. The Economic Times website. Accessed December 15, 2020. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/internet/india-rises-4-places-to-44th-rank-in-world-digital-competitiveness-rankings/articleshow/71312837.cms

8. Ramani K, Mavalankar D. Health system in India: opportunities and challenges for improvements. J Health Organ Manag. 2006; 20(6):560-572.
9. Bouey J. Strengthening China’s Public Health Response System: From SARS to COVID-19. Am J Public Health. 2020; 110(7):939-940.
10. Navigating health law in Canada – the legal framework. Mondaq website. Accessed December 18, 2020. https://www.mondaq.com/canada/healthcare/247076/navigating-health-law-in-canada–the-legal-framework-june-2013?fbclid=IwAR1b6he0JsdSpXi2ZxObmixjFZrjtXvijEbeambJfCedCgD7c2I5_TkN4D0
11. Government of Canada website. Accessed December 16, 2020. https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/corporate/mandate/about-agency/background.html