Browsing by Author "Dlodlo, Nomusa"

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    A framework to enable semantic interoperability of data in heterogeneous health information systems: a case of Namibia
    (Springer International Publishing, 2018) Angula, Nikodemus; Dlodlo, Nomusa
    The District Health Information System (DHIS) is an information system that is hosted in the Khomas regional office of the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) in Namibia. Parallel to the DHIS, the MoHSS runs silo information systems in the 14 regions of Namibia which were donated by non-governmental organisations in addition to a regional DHIS. The DHIS and silo systems currently work in isolation from one another, hence this study is on finding a framework to enable semantic interoperability of data in these heterogeneous health information systems (HIS) so that the DHIS and these silo systems in the Namibian public hospitals can act as an integrated platform to share and exchange health- related information with each other. Thus, a protocol called Interlink protocol is developed in this research to enable integration. The DHIS and silo- interfaced system that will be developed in this research should be able to link or connect all the public hospitals in Namibia to the central database at the MoHSS for health information feed. The system would allow public hospitals to interlink with each other through a technology integrated platform. The study therefore seeks to interface DHIS and silo systems at a data level. The aim of this research therefore is to design and develop a framework for data semantic interoperability of DHIS and these other health information silo systems so that they can exchange health data and information.
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    A Mobile Application for Health Information Dissemination: a Namibian Context
    (IEEE, 2016) Angula, Nikodemus; Dlodlo, Nomusa
    Mobile devices have become the most powerful tool to disseminate information across communities in today’s world. The current method of disseminating health-related information to the communities in Namibia is a manual system which is not efficient and effective. This study sought to identify an efficient and effective way to disseminate health information. The first phase of the study was qualitative, applying an interpretive approach and a qualitative multi-case study research design. Two hospitals, the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS), the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) and members of the community participated in this study. Face-to-face interviews, focus group interviews, questionnaires and document sampling were used as data collection methods to identify the requirements for a mobile application. Through laboratory experimentation, the second phase of the study led to the development of a prototype mobile application that will enable anyone to install the application on their phones in order to access general diseases information from the CDC.The first phase of the research concluded that a large number of Namibians own cellphones hence a mobile application would suffice. The most prevalent diseases from the research are malaria, diabetes, cancer and HIV, hence the initial application should concentrate on information dissemination for such. The mobile application content covers the common diseases in Namibia, their definition, the causes of the disease, the symptoms of the disease, how to prevent the disease and whom to contact.In the research conducted, the majority of the population is literate hence the application can support text-based information in addition to graphics. The research also found that a large number of people visit clinics and hospitals hence the mobile application will benefit both even those who visit clinics and hospitals as well provided they have smartphone.