Webinar: On Wednesday, 2 April, the Linked Immunisation Action Network (Linked) will facilitate a learning discussion for countries and practitioners who are struggling to incorporate disparate data sources and harmonize data standards across their existing digital immunisation systems, including electronic immunisation registries (EIR). The webinar will feature the WHO’s SMART Guidelines and the new Digital Adaptation Kit (DAK) for immunisation, released in January 2025. We will also invite countries who are using the new Digital Adaptation Kit to share their experiences on how they are using the DAK to plan or update their EIRs.
Linked recommends this webinar for all EPI managers and technical specialists that are supporting the planning, development and implementation of EIRs in their country.
Please register for this event using the link here.
Why focus on this topic: Standardizing information across digital immunisation systems and providing data for domestic and international use often requires manual processes or manipulation. The WHO SMART guidelines help countries to more efficiently and accurately adopt, and benefit from, WHO health and data recommendations with digital systems and the Digital Adaptation Kit makes it easier for countries to incorporate the guidelines.
The use of SMART guidelines results in standards-based, interoperable systems that can share accurate data and become part of stronger, more sustainable health information systems. In digital systems, they improve quality of health content and facilitate consistent, standardized collection of data, appropriate decision support, and calculation of indicators across geographies. SMART guidelines reduce the risks associated with digital investments. They lower the cost of related software development, equipping governments with SMART software specifications to ensure vendors provide a minimum of functionality and quality content, in turn reducing potential for vendor lock-in.
Webinar discussion: This session will bring together Linked members who are implementing EIRs with WHO, PAHO and country representatives who have used the DAK to update their EIRs. The virtual engagement will showcase the overall SMART Guidelines effort, focusing on the new DAK for immunizations, and then hear from countries who are using these tools to plan and update their national immunisation systems.
The webinar will feature Natschja (Nat) Ratanaprayul, Technical Officer at WHO, who coordinates the overall SMART Guidelines programme at WHO and works with countries to implement DAKs across multiple health areas, depending on country needs and representatives from countries. We are also working to secure representatives from Malaysia and Jamaica who were some of the first users of the DAK.
About Linked: Linked brings together immunisation practitioners, policymakers, and partners from middle-income countries to identify common immunisation programme challenges and the transformative practices that will lead to greater resilience, equity, and sustainability. Through collaborative peer-to-peer learning, the network engages member countries to:
- Understand top immunisation programme challenges, including barriers and threats to maintaining high and equitable immunisation coverage and sustainably introducing new vaccines
- Facilitate peer-to-peer knowledge sharing to elevate tested approaches and good practices for strengthening immunisation programming
- Support the implementation of good practices and lessons learned — working with and through local partners—to address immunisation programme challenges
- Strengthen skills and capacities within immunisation programmes
- Capture and disseminate implementation experiences to ensure learning is shared and sustainable