Documenting Health Data Quality Practices in Tanzania

Author(s): MEASURE Evaluation–Tanzania

Year: 2018

Abstract:

Since 2008, MEASURE Evaluation–Tanzania (MEval-TZ) has been conducting annual data quality assessments (DQAs) within selected HIV testing, care, and treatment programs. The DQAs aim to identify strengths and weaknesses in data collection, aggregation, and reporting at all levels, from health facilities to intermediate reporting levels of implementing partners (IPs) to the national headquarters of those partners and ultimately to USAID. The assessments also aim to improve the capacity of IPs and health facilities to collect and report good-quality data and to carry out internal DQAs. After each round of DQAs, MEval-TZ supported IPs and health facilities to develop action plans to address gaps that have been identified in their health information systems (HIS).

MEval-TZ conducted this study to describe key facilitators of and barriers to the effectiveness of DQAs in strengthening data quality, to understand the contribution of the DQAs in strengthening HIS, to assess the effects of MEval-TZ’s monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system strengthening activities at the subnational level, and to identify successes and opportunities for improving data quality interventions.