JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

While there has been growing interest in using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for supply chain management in public health programs, there is not enough evidence or guidelines that describe the specific features, processes and consequences.

Objective:

The formative study aims to describe the operational process of a mass distribution of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLINs) campaign program in Nigeria and discuss whether and how ICT technology can change the current practice and help resolve major implementation issues.

Methods:

Nigeria implemented LLIN campaign programs in six states in 2017. We collected qualitative data in Edo and Kwara states in June 2017 where the LLIN campaign was implemented with existing paper based system and a digital data collection and management tool respectively. We identified technical features and operational processes of paper and ICT-based systems based on the documented operation manuals, field observations, and informant interviews. We identified key program implementation issues in the three aspects: logistic issues, technical issues, and demand creation. Each issue was categorized by the expected degree (low, mid, and high) of change by the ICT system.

Results:

The net campaign started with micro-planning and training followed by a month-long implementation including household mobilization, net movement, net distribution and end process monitoring. The ICT system has the potential for improving management and oversight through user-centered interface design, built-in data quality control logic flow/algorithms, workflow automation, and challenges as those in the current paper-based system. In particular, it can better manage the issues related to the data reporting system and processes, which comprises significant staff time and effort in the current paper-based practice.

Conclusions:

The ICT system can facilitate the measurement of population coverage beyond program coverage during an LLIN campaign with greater data reliability and timeliness, which are often compromised under limited workforce capacity in paper-based system. Clinical Trial: Not applicable.