HRIS In Focus The HRIS Strengthening Blog

Technical Briefs Focus on Use of Data for Health Workforce Planning and Management 15 September 2008

Three new technical briefs from the Capacity Project expand the breadth and depth of information available to HR practitioners. “An Overview of Human Resources for Health (HRH) Projection Models” provides a rapid review of health workforce projection approaches and includes a list of references for further research. “Building the Bridge from Human Resources Data to Effective Decisions: Ten Pillars of Successful Data-Driven Decision-Making” provides guidance in the use of HR data for making policy and management decisions. “Data Quality Considerations in Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) Strengthening” discusses concepts of data quality and provides concrete examples of the importance of data management specific to the field of HRH. Technical briefs are available in print and on the Capacity Project website in English, French and Spanish.

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New Publication: Building the Bridge from Human Resources Data to Effective Decisions: 9 September 2008

The Capacity Project recently published a technical brief on Data-Driven Decision-Making (DDDM) entitled, “Building the Bridge from Human Resources Data to Effective Decisions: Ten Pillars of Successful Data-Driven Decision-Making.” The brief was written by Ummuro Adano, Senior HR Management Systems Adviser for the Capacity Project. Ummuro provides technical assistance in the areas of HR management and leadership, and has worked closely with the HRIS team to develop the DDDM element of our five-step strengthening process. He is also the technical point person for the Project’s Kenya programs.

The technical brief emphasizes that the primary goal of an HRIS should be to promote better use of data to drive effective decision making that positively impacts HR policies and practice. Ummuro presents the following ten pillars to aid HR managers and decision makers in making effective HR policy and management decisions: 

  1. Making Use of the Data
  2. Developing a Culture of Inquiry
  3. Context Matters
  4. Aligning Different Forces, Interests, and Beliefs
  5. Preparing for Data Skeptics
  6. The Power of the Individual
  7. The Power of the Organization
  8. Navigating Difficult Conversations
  9. Process and Relationships
  10. A Journey, Not a Destination

We are very excited about the timeliness of this new publication — a third Capacity Project DDDM workshop  will be held this month in Rwanda. The HRIS team is currently working with Ummuro and local Project staff to plan and design the workshop.

You can read the full brief here: http://www.capacityproject.org/images/stories/files/techbrief_11.pdf

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New Voices Article About DDDM 4 August 2008

An essential part of our five-step HRIS Strengthening Process is to support managers and decision makers to effectively use and analyze data in order to make informed decisions about their health workforce. A new Capacity Project Voices article about Data-Driven Decision-Making (DDDM) was recently finalized last week and posted to the Project’s website here.

The article, “Drawing on Data: Effective Decision-Making for the Health Workforce,” is based on interviews with participants from the Capacity Project’s first two DDDM workshops. The pilot workshop was held in Uganda in June 2007 and another workshop was held in Swaziland in February 2008. HRIS team members helped plan and facilitate the workshops, and also conducted the interviews and helped draft the article. A third DDDM workshop is scheduled for September in Rwanda. HRIS team members are currently working with local Capacity Project Rwanda staff to secure a venue and plan the agenda.

You can read more about our HRIS Strengthening Process and DDDM here.

On a related note, the Capacity Project is in the process of finalizing a technical brief about data quality. We are very excited about this product and will post a blog announcing its release as soon as it’s finalized.

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The information provided on this website is not official U.S. Government information and does not represent the views or positions of the U.S. Agency for International Development or the U.S. Government. HRIS Strengthening is a program of the Capacity Project, a USAID-funded global project designed to strengthen human resources for health. The Capacity Project partnership is led by IntraHealth International, Inc.