Ministry implementing database for maternal/child care
Stabroek News
April 12, 2007
The Ministry of Health is implementing a Perinatal Information System (SIP) that will bring Guyana in harmony with the system used in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The programme is being employed in collaboration the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and CLAP which is a PAHO/World Health Organisation specialised centre for perinatology. The system was developed by CLAP and is used throughout Latin America and the Caribbean a press release from the ministry said. The information will help the ministry to provide a database for planning; to offer a data standard; to be a communication tool for the different health providers over distance and time; to provide reliable local statistics; to train perinatal health staff; to record data of legal importance; to act as an audit tool; to characterize the population; to evaluate health care quality; to rank problems and to perform epidemiologic research.
The ministry said the "SIP will become a part of a total health information (system) in the country and as part of the programme a new Maternal Child Health Card will be introduced." In preparation for its immediate implementation the ministry and PAHO are hosting a three-day workshop at the Cara Lodge with personnel from the health sector from across the country. In his opening remarks Minister of Health Dr Leslie Ramsammy said employing the SIP is critical in improving the quality of the country's maternal and child health programme. He said it will become an important new component of an integrated computerised health information system which is already being used in parts of the health sector. The workshop is being facilitated by personnel from Washington, St Vincent and Barbados.
PAHO Country Representative Dr Kathleen Israel and Director of Professional and Medical Services Dr Madan Rambarran also attended the induction.