APPLYING TO THE BAA: STRENGTHENING HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEMS

TOWARDINTEROPERABILITY IN THE

WEST AFRICA REGION

October 1, 2015

• In 2014, Guinea, Liberia, andSierra Leone were hit hard by thelargest Ebola outbreak in history.

• The outbreak is the first of its scaleand first to affect large urbanpopulations.

• The epidemic exposedweaknesses in health informationsystems and underscored theneed to strengthen mechanismsfor timely, reliable informationmanagement and data sharing.

THE EBOLA OUTBREAK

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WHY INTEROPERABILITY IS IMPORTANT

Example of information flows from the health centers to the Ministry of Health at the peak of the crisis in Liberia.

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EBOLA HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEM CHALLENGES

● Varied, un-linked health information systems

● Limited range for the flow of information

● Original, siloed, and specifically dedicated platforms generateddata that could not be merged and aggregated

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A CALL FOR INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS

On September 4, 2015, USAID issued an Addendum to a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA), seeking opportunities to co-create, co-design, co-invest, and collaborate in the research, development, piloting, testing, and scaling of innovative, practical, and cost-effective interventions.

www.usaid.gov/ebola/baa 5

STRENGTHENING HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEMS

TOWARDINTEROPERABILITY IN THE

WEST AFRICA REGION ADDENDUM

DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT QUESTION 1:

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How do we better enable and connect the community, national and regional systems and resources that support the health worker with actionable information?

○ Digital tools for health worker engagement ○ Tackling ICT infrastructure and technical challenges○ Digital tools for community-level and citizen engagement○ Integrating social mobilization in national HIS○ Community-level payment systems (including mobile) and

linking human resources information systems○ Integrated [electronic] disease surveillance and reporting ○ Interoperability across borders○ Innovative technologies within HIS for quality data reporting

DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT QUESTION 2:

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How do we strengthen HIS and data systems so they become valuable public goods that support real-time decisions?

○ Use and contribute to shared health facility and health worker registries

○ Health facility and health worker registries accessibility for all○ National and regional actors practicing data sharing, open

standards, open source○ Support and expand digital health infrastructure in West Africa

region○ Ensuring data privacy and information security while moving

towards public goods and data sharing models

DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT QUESTION 3:

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How can we best support the region to develop digital health systems with shared and innovative infrastructure for future interoperability and open integration?

○ Knowledge and capacity for existing tools and infrastructure ○ Local solutions and ownership○ Incentives and coordination for shared infrastructure

investment which includes:■ governments■ regional bodies■ international and nongovernmental organizations■ donor institutions, etc

○ Criteria and standards for assessing technology interoperability for human and animal health and data systems

○ Sustain, maintain, expand interoperability with evolving platforms

Phases of the BAA & Addendum Award Process

ANNOUNCEMENT• Umbrella Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) is published• Addendum published, describing specific research area of interest• USAID evaluates expressions of interest (EOIs)

INITIAL CONCEPT• USAID and selected potential partners convene to co-create, co-design the

solution sets• Tentatively: November 12-14• Organizations may choose to work together to develop concept note

(s) and illustrative budgets at this stage

CONCEPT REVIEW• Science and Peer Review Board• USAID determines funding mechanisms• The concept note goes through USAID internal clearances

CO-DEVELOPMENT• Organizations clustered around (one or multiple) concept notes will develop

project plans and final budgets• USAID determines necessary approvals and clearances• Awards are made 9

Submit Expressions

of Interest

Develop & Finalize

Project Plan

Developand Submit

Concept Note(s)

Attend Convening

EOIs must:• Be submitted in English• Not exceed 2,000 words• Contain a header • Be in .docx or .pdf formatAnd contain the following: • Your organization’s idea/approach to developing HIS

capacity and interoperability. Plus:➢ Your organization’s theory of change➢ Actors your organization targets as the primary

audience/ consumer of data➢ Information about how your approach will be

sustainable➢ Monitoring and evaluation approach

PREPARING AN EXPRESSION OF INTEREST

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EOIs must also include:• Talent and other resources you are willing to dedicate

to this collaboration.• Provide your organization’s unique perspectives and

capabilities.• Ability to partner with related and complementary

organizations.

PREPARING AN EXPRESSION OF INTEREST

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WHO SHOULD SUBMIT AN EOI?

The following types of applicants are encouraged to apply:

• Donors• Non-governmental organizations (NGOs)• Public and private organizations • For-profit and nonprofit organizations • Institutions of higher education • Public international organizations • U.S. and non-U.S. governmental organizations that

can affect change in the health information ecosystem

• Other types of partnerships 12

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Learn more at digitalprinciples.org

The Principles: 1: Design with the user. 2: Understand the Existing Ecosystem. 3: Design for Scale. 4: Build for Sustainability.5. Be Data Driven. 6: Use Open Standards, Open Data, Open Source, and Open Innovation. 7: Reuse and Improve. 8: Address Privacy and Security. 9: Be Collaborative

WHAT NEXT?

• SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS NOW!

• SUBMIT YOUR EOI BY OCTOBER 9, 2015.

• HEAR BACK WITHIN 21 DAYS.

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HIS INTEROPERABILITY WORKSHOP

Successful applicants will be invited to join us for a convening:

Date: November 12-14, 2015

Location: Washington, DC

Travel Arrangements: Participants are expected to cover travel and lodging expenses

Apply www.usaid.gov/ebola/baa