IICD supported project: Integrated Patients Monitoring System - Zambia

The patient monitoring system provides support to the home based care (HBC) units in the five rural districts of the Diocese of Mongu in Western Province and their 2400 chronically ill patients. The project is supported by IICD since February 2008. This project will solve the challenge of a very weak system for capturing, management, reporting and communication of patient data between the districts and the head office.

ICT equipment is purchased: 6 PC’s, 3 laptops, printers and a photocopier. To facilitate the equipment, a hospital room was converted into an ICT training centre. Furthermore awareness of the possibilities of ICT for the Home Based Care group was raised and an open source database is designed. With this database districts can capture patient information.

The Zambian health sector is weak and challenged by several factors, including a high and complex disease burden, which is compounded by the high prevalence and impact of HIV/AIDS and malaria. Critical shortages of health workers at all levels of the health service delivery system is another problem, together with underdeveloped infrastructure, especially transport, communication and health service infrastructure in rural areas.

Western Province is one of the poorest regions in Zambia with around 727,000 people, with significantly high levels of HIV/AIDS prevalence and poverty, estimated at 15%.

Read more about IICD’s Zambia Country Programme.

• To create an information and communication system flow between the Diocese of Mongu and five districts in Western Province, where the Home Based Care programme is being implemented;
• To enhance the competences of the programme staff and volunteers
• To strengthen the capacity of the programme and its beneficiaries;
• To develop and nurture networking within the organisation and with other organisations and individuals who share the vision of the programme;
• To develop and maintain an information system that communicates (to all stakeholders) the activities and programmes of the HBC department;
• To improve information flow within the department and between the departments and its partners;
• To mobilize and coordinate resources for the implementation of sustainable programmes;
• To develop and maintain a sound financial management system that provides reliable and transparent services and information for use within the department;
• To improve the ICT skills of the users and other critical staff of the organisation.

The Diocese of Mongu has several programs to support the communities: Home Based Care, Orphans and Vulnerable Children OVC, Justice and Peace, Development Education Program (Training for Transformation), Agriculture and a Supplementary feeding program for the Home Based Care and OVCs.

Interview with Mr Myamba Ernest, DOM-HBC

Read more about IICD's approach towards Health.

The Home based Care project of the Diocese of Mongu (DOM-HBC) is one of the programmes under the Development Department of the Mongu Diocese. The Development Department is a faith-based health institution and one of the affiliates of the Churches Health Association of Zambia (CHAZ). It has several other community programmes.