2.G. Practice session: Africa and Europe: peer-to-peer HIS assessments for NCD, mental health and injuries surveillance
Authors:   Organised by: Robert Koch Institute (Germany), Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, WHO/Europe,   Chair persons: Angela Fehr (Germany), Marieke Verschuuren (EUPHA)
Published: October 2024

Public health surveillance is the basis for evidence-informed decision-making and health (systems) research, globally. Without robust data, public health challenges cannot be tackled. NCDs, mental health conditions and injuries (NCDI/MH) are among the biggest global public health challenges. Their risk and protective factors, including social, political and commercial determinants of health, transcend borders and require multi-disciplinary, multi-stakeholder and long-term responses. Since 2006, comparable national data on NCDI/MH are being collected in Europe on the basis of European Core Health Indicators (ECHI) and the European Health Interview Survey (EHIS). Currently, EU and WHO EURO are working together to set up a new Health Information Network. At EU level, a sustainable health information infrastructure is still lacking, despite extensive preparations in EU-funded projects. Part of these project activities were health information system (HIS) assessments, applying the WHO EURO Support tool to strengthen health information systems for peer-to-peer assessments. In the African region, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), founded in 2017, made NCDI/MH prevention and control a strategic priority. In 2021, it launched its first continental NCDs, Injuries Prevention and Control and Mental Health Promotion Strategy (2022-26) under which the organization supports its Member States. At the 3rd International Conference on Public Health in Africa (Zambia, Nov. 2023), Africa CDC presented a continental Guidance to strengthen NCDI/MH surveillance. The Guidance was developed in collaboration with Robert Koch Institute (RKI) and is based on desk reviews, surveys and national HIS assessments. Both Europe and Africa performed HIS assessments to strengthen NCDI/MH surveillance; standardized tools from WHO EURO and from the International Association of National Public Health Institutes (IANPHI) were used and adapted to fit peer-to-peer approaches and regional contexts. This workshop will present and discuss methodological approaches, experiences and lessons learned, thereby initiating knowledge exchange across continents. The presentations will address the following points:

- From top-down to peer-to-peer: methods & tools used in HIS assessments

- From paper to practice: the importance of site visits in HIS assessments

- From educated guesses to evidence: outcomes of HIS assessments at country level

- From evidence to action: translation of HIS assessment outcomes into HIS improvements

- From pilot to scale-up: challenges, lessons learned, sustainability of HIS developments

To our knowledge, this workshop is the first one at the EPH to bring together practitioners in HIS strengthening for NCDI/MH from Africa and Europe. The workshop offers a unique opportunity to engage with the audience and to explore options for international collaboration.

Key messages

• Interregional collaboration helps reduce health information inequalities, facilitating better global management of high burden health challenges, such as NCDs, mental health conditions and injuries.

• Peer-to-peer HIS assessments in Africa and Europe strengthen NCDI/MH surveillance. They build evidence for policy advice, research and health education and add the benefit of forging expert networks.