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Fhsis - CHN

Nursing (University of Santo Tomas–Legazpi)

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MonographNo. 4

The Field
Health
Services
Information
System
Its Role in Decentralizing
Health Services
in the Philippines

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Monograph No. 4

The Field
Health
Services
Information
System
Its Role in Decentralizing
Health Services
in the Philippines

By Manuel 0. Sta. Maria

Management Sciences for Health

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The Field Health Services

InformationSystem :
Its Role in Decentralizing
Health Services
in the Philippines

CSP Monograph No. 4

Published by
The Child Survival Program,
Department of Health,
Republic of the Philippines,
with the assistance of
the United States Agency for
International Development
(USAID).

Manila 1993

Editing, design and  production by

Beaulah P. Taguiwalo

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The FHSIS : Its Role in DecentralizingHealth Services in the Philippines

Contents

Page 7 Abbreviationsused

Page9 Introduction
Page11 1 The FHSIS in perspective

Page 13 2  The FHSIS and its components

Page18 3 Tie FHSIS and the LGO

Page 23 4 The FHSIS anddevolution

Page26 5 The FHSIS, APBHP,and otherDOH

technologies
Page 29 Annex A
Sample pages of a Target ClientList (TCL) ledger

Page 33 Annex B
List of FHSIS Reports/Forms(RFs)
Page 35 Samples of FHSIS Reports/Forms(RFs)

Page39 Annex C
Samplepages of a Summary Table (SumTab)
Page45 Annex D
Samples of Simplified OutputTables (SOTs)

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The FHSIS:Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in the Philippines

Abbreviations used

BHS Barangay Health Station

CDD Control of Diarrheal Disease
DOH Department of Health (Philippines)
EPI Expanded Program for Immunization
FHSIS Field Health Services Information System
HIS Health Inteiligence Service
I/FTR Individual/Family Treatment Record
LGC Local Government Code
LGO Local Government Official/s
LGU Local Government Unit/s
MCH Maternal and Child Health
MW Midwife
NCR National Capital Region
OT Output Table/s
PCO PHO Computer Operator
PHN Public Health Nurse
PHO Provincial Health Office
RF Reporting Forbms; Reports/Forms
RCO RHO Computer Operator
RHO Regional Health Office
RHU Rural Health Unit (Municipality)
SOT Simplified Output Table/s
SumTab Summary Table
TCL Target Client List
USAID United States Agency for International Development
WHO World Health Organization

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The FHSIS : Its Roe in Decentralizing t'alth Series in the I'lilippiles

Introduction

The Field Health Services Information System (FHSIS) is the only

information system for public health operating throughout the Philippines
today. Nowhere in tile government system can one find an information
system that reaches to the very roots of the political/social structure ­­ the
barangays. h was implemented after considerable time spent studying tile
country's public health information requirememts and thereafter sttdying
and installing the system design and finally training its implementors and
users.
Barely a year in full operation, the F1 ISIS had to contend with a
development of national importance: the implementation of the Local
Government Code (LGC), which devolved the management of public health
facilities to tie Local Government Units (RGUs).
Because FHSIS is facility-based, tile I.GC presented a new design
consideration. -lowever, because of the inherent strengths of the recording
and reporting subsystens of the Fl-ISIS, the system has been assessed as
workable by the very people who must oversee it in the regions.
National information systems, it is said, settle down after five years.
FHSIS is still in its infancy, and it is still in tile process of adjustment and
improvement. But because it is a system developed specifically for the local
community, it is only right that in the process of adjustment and
improvement, it adjusts and improves in the direction of effectively serving
and promoting the devolution of health services.

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The FHSIS :Its

Role i Decent ralizing Ilealth,Services in the I'hlilippines

The FHSIS
in Perspective
"The first attemps at putting togetheran information
system for the  DOH began as a response to the need for
streamlining an existing reporting system that, midwi es
complained,, was burdensome, time-consumning, and
ultimnately evenl prevented them
from dischargingtheir seniice
deliveryfunctions fully."

F ISIS is the result of
the joint efforts of many 
sectors  within and 
outside the  Department 
of Health (DOI I). The 
first attenips at putting
together a ni n forma t ion
svstem for the  DOII
began as a response  to 
the need for streamlining
an existing reporting  system 
that,  mid wives complained,  was 
burdensome, time­consumIing, 
and ultimately even prevented 
them  from  discharging their service 
delivery functions  fully. At  least  two 
attempts were made  between  1976 and 
1982  to create an information  system  that would  orchestrate  all existing 
reports, but neither of these  attemps prospered  beyond  the design  stage. 
A health  information  system  had  been conceptualized  in  1987 by the 
World  Health  Organization  (WHO). The  present  information  system  ­ the 
FHSIS - was developed  primarily  because of a grant provided  by the United 
States  Agency  for International Development  (USAID) to  the WHO  in  1988

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The FHSIS: Its Role in Decentraliziu HealthServices in the Philippines

to continue what it had started. WHO consultants spent the whole year of
1988 conducting workshops among program areas, gathering health
workers' information requirements, determining the readiness of miawives
for the FHSIS, formatting and testing reporting forms, preparing the
procedures manual, designing the training program, and pre-testing the
system in Regions 4 and 7. By 1989, the manuals and forms had been revised
and finalized; training sessions had been conducted for system
implementors, which lasted until the middle of 1990); and the system was
being implemented in five regions. Two years later, by April 1990, the
system was operational in all regions except the National Capital Region
(NCR). (Because of the urban setting and unique environment in the NCR,
pre-testing had not been concluded at the time. Implementation of the
system in the NCR finally took place in 1991.) The Department of Health,
through the USAID Child Survival Program (CSP) grant, continued
implementing the system in 1990 and, toward the latter half of the year,
acquired the services of an advisor to assist the Health Intelligence Service
(HIS) manage the system.
The Fl-ISIS was conceived as a computer-based system from the start. An
essential component was the development of computer programs for data
entry, processing, and report generation, which started in late 1989. The
resulting software was then installed in the provincial health offices (P-Os),
which had been identified beforeoand as the systern's processing nodes. The
installation of the software in the PHOs took place in 1991, although several
versions of the software were made afterwards, between 1990 and 1992, to
satisfy the requirements of the system. After the software has been installed,
training sessions were conducted for computer operators. Since there were
no official positions for computer operators in the PI 1Os, personnel
identified for training were either pulled out from existing assignments or
simply given additional duties. 13 mid-1991, most of the 75 provinces were
able to produce their first computer-generated output tables (OTs).
Initial monitoring of the system was done in early 1991. The conclusion
arrived at was that inspite of technical problems, the midwives appreciated
the system, particularly in relation to their work that had to do with
recording and reporting.
A memorandum issued in 1991 by the DOH Undersecrtary and Chief of
Staff is particularly relevant to the character and development of the FHSIS.
Among other things, it pointed out that the FHSIS is the only reporting
system sanctioned for all programs covered by the FHSIS, and that any
changes in the system cannot be undertaken until after two years of its full
nationwide imp!ementation, which would be the year 1993.

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The FHSIS : Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in the Philippines

The FHSIS
and its components
"There are five component
activities that togethercomprise
the FHSIS. These are recording,
reporting,data entry,processing,
and the production and
dissemination of output
tables."

Objectives of the FHSIS

The FHSIS has the following
objectives:
" To provide summary data
on health service delivery G
and selected program
accomplishment
indicators at the barangay,
municipality/city, district,
provincial, regional, and
national levels;
" To provide data which,
when combined with data
from other sources, caln be
used for program monitoring
and evaluation purposes;
" To provide a standardized,
facility-level database which can be accessed for more in-depth studies;
"To ensure that the data reported are useful and accurate and are
disseminated in a timely and easy fashion; and
" To minimize the burden of recording and reporting at the service delivery
level in order to allow more time for patient care and promotive activities.

'All

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The FlISIS : Its Role in DecentralizingHealt/h Services in the Philippines

Programs covered by the FHSIS

The Departmernt of Health has a network of information systems, and the
FHSIS was conceived as a major component of this network. In particular,
the FHSIS is a facility-based system designed to provide basic health-service
delivery data for the following programs:
" Maternal and Child Health (MCI ), which includes Pre-natal Care,
Post-partum Care, Expanded Program on Immunization (EI), and
Control of Diarrheal Diseases (CDD)
" Nutrition
* Family Planning
* Tuberculosis
" Malaria Control
" Schistosomiasis Control
" Leprosy Control
" Dental Health
" Environmental Health
" Vital Statistics, which includes Natality, Mortality, and Population
" Notifiable Diseases
* Logistics

The component activities of the FHSIS

There are five component activities that together comprise the FHSIS. These
are recording, reporting, data entry, processing, and the production and
dissemination of output tables.

Recording
Two basic rec(,-ds are kept in the health facility: the Individual/Family
Treatment Record (I/FTR) and the Target Client List (TCL).
The I/FTR documents the patient's consultation with the health
personnel. It is a record of the patient's symptoms/complaints and the
corresponding diagnoses, treatments, aid dates of encounter with the health
provider. Some programs have their own recording specifications, but each
facility is encouraged to maintain a file for each individual/family as part of
the system. The TCL, on the other hand, is a facility-based ledger which
records health services rendered to specific patients (clients, "targets", or
"eligibles") and as such serves several purposes:

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The FHSIS . Its Role in DecentralizingHealth Services in the Philippines

1. To help the health service provider plan and carry out patient care and
service delivery;
2. To facilitate the monitoring and supervision of service delivery
activities;
3. To report services delivered;
4. To provide a clinic-level data base which can be accessed for further
studies.

The client lists maintained by the health facility are:

1. Target Group L.st for EPI
2. Target/Client List for Children 0to 59 months
3. Target/Client List for Nutrition
4. Client List for Prenatal Care
5. Client List for Postpartum Care
6. Client List for Family Planning (Non-surgical Methods)
7. List for TB Symptomatics
8. Client List for TB Cases under Short Course Chemotherapy (SCC)
9. Client List for TB Cases under Standard Regimen (SR)
10. Client List for Leprosy Cases

Specific instructions for recording data in the TCLs are found in the FHSIS
Manual of Procedures.

Reporting
In the FHSIS, data and information are transmitted from one reporting unit
to another primarily through the FHSIS reporting forms (RFs). Majority of
the RFs are prepared and submitted either monthly or quarterly. There is
one RF that is prepared weekly, there are several that are prepared annually,
and a few that are prepared upon the occurence of specific events. In
addition, the FlISIS RF also records services which are not "client"-specific
and therefore cannot be found in the TCL. A list of the FlISIS RFs and their
schedules of submission can be found in Annex A, together with a sample of
some of the RFs.
The RFs have boxes for tallying the services that have been provided
during the period for which the report is being prepared. This tally box
facilitates the recording and transfer of accurate data. Complete guidelines
for filling up the FISIS RFs are found in the FISIS Manual of Procedures.
RFs are filled up by all midwives (MWs) in the Barangay Health Stations

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The FHSIS: Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in the Philippines

(BHSs). The data is then transferred onto a Summary Table (SumTab), which
the Midwives keep on file ill the BFIS or health facility. These SumTabs
comprise the database for the Midwives. Sample pages of the SumTab are
found in Annex B. Finally, tile Midwives submit their Rs to the Public
Health Nurse (PHN) for validating and forwarding to tile Provincial Health
Office (PHO).

Data  Entry and Processing

The PHO is the processing node of the FlISIS. It receives all the RFs from the
rural health units (RHUs) of municipalities and from the city health offices
(CHOs) of the component cities in tile province, and a designated Provincial
Computer Operator (PCO) in tile P1-1O performs the data entry using
DOH-developed software. The RFs submitted to the P10 serve as the source
documents for data entry. When the PCO enters the data in the PHO
computers, the newly-entered data automatically updates and consolidates
all previous records of each public health program on a year-to-date basis.
The PCO submits soft copies (diskettes) to the Regional H-ealth Office
(RHO) for further consolidation and processing by the RI-1 Computer
Operator (RCO). The CHO submits directly to the RHO.

Productionand Disseminationof Output Tables

After all the data from all the RFs have been entered, the Provincial
Computer Operator (PCO) produces the Output Tables (OTs) using
computers and printers located in the Provincial Health Office or the City
Health Office. Since the OT is the product of the software using current data,
it is a mirror of all the data submitted by the different reporting unifs. In
addition, it also includes calculations that are automatically made by the
PHO computer, based on predetermined and pre-defined indicators.
Copies of the OT are given to all District Health Offices (DI-Os) and Rural
Health Units (RHUs) for the use of health managers in monitoring,
supervision and administration. The RHO likewise produces consolidated
OTs from the PHO diskettes for its own use in monitoring, supervision and
management. Technical coordinators at both the PI-O and RHO levels are
also given copies of the OTs.
The FHSIS was originally intended to assist tile health service delivery
managers of the DOI-. Because of the passage of the Local Government
Code (LGC) in 1991 and tile projection of its full implementation in 1993, the
focus of the reporting system had to shift in part.

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The FHSIS :Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in the Philippines

Under the LGC, the management and provision of health services was
transferred to local government officials (LGOs). Consequently, the FHSIS
now serves the LGO rather than the DOH. While the elements of the system
remain basically unchanged, the whole system must now be viewed in a
new way, keeping in mind that its primary user and implementor is now the
LGO, with the DOll merely providing appropriate technical support.
Under the LGC, it has become more necessary than ever that the elements
of the Fl-ISIS all operate at the local government unit (LGU). Fortunately, the
designers of the F-ISIS gave primary importance to the design of the Target
Client List (TCL), which has now become the principal data base at the LGU.
With only minor modifications in the TCLs and RFs, reporting, processing
and the production of reports can now take place at the LGU, sometimes
even without involving computers at all.

"Under the LGC, the mianagemnent and provision of health

services was transferredto localgovernment officials...

"While the elements of the system remain basically

unchanged,the whole system must now be viewed in a new
way, keeping in mind that its primary user and
implenentor is now the LGO...."

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The FHSIS: Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in tie Philippines

The FHSIS
and the LGO
"...the FHSIS is a
an existing sy~stemn
that is
immediately
available to the
LGO. He can use
the sy/stemn as it is,
or he can adapt it
to address his
other concerns."

Tie LGO and

health services for
the community
Under the Lo-al Government Code, the responsibility for the management
and provision of health services to the community has shifted to the LGO. In
order to carry this out, the LGO must effectively address the following
I. availability of services and manpower
2. quality of services and manpower
3. readiness of resources when needed.

The LGO may find it useful, if not necessary, to know the answers to the
following questions:
1. Who are the beneficiaries of the health services?
2. Where are thev located?
3. What are the services that they need?
4. Flow much load can the midwife bear?
5.   What resources support ­­ financial, in kind, transportation ­­ does he
need to effect these services?

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The FHSIS : Its Rote in DecentralizingI hwlth Servic,'s in the Philippines

The FHSIS provides the answers to these questions, and all the LGO has to
do is use it.

The health situation in the community as shoVn by the

TCL and the RFs
The Target Client List (TCL) is a veritable fixture of the barangay health
station (BIiS), inv'ariablv prominently displayed on a table. The TCL is a
carefully tended document; it is in a sense the definitive document regarding
the health situation in the community, and the midwives in particular are
very much aware of how important it is. It is always carried in the midwife's
kit and brought along during the her visits to her ''targets" or "clients".
Stories are told about the care that midwives have demonstrated towards the
TCL, involving floods, fires, capsized bancas, runaway horses, etc.

The Target Client I1st (TCI) is in the form of a ledger that records all
services, covering various health programs, that are rendered to specific
persons, patients or clients. Services which are not client-specific are directly
recorded in the tally/reporting torm or RF. Indeed, it can truly be said that
the TCI. and the Rls are, together, comprehensive and faithful dcocuments of
the service history of the 131IS. Specifically, the TCI. contains a record of
I. all pregnant women eligible for pre-natal care/service within the
catchment area
2. all women delivering babies within the catchment area
3. all eligible men and women aged 15-49 receivirz family-planning
service provided by the reporting facility
4. all children from birth upwards eligible fLr immunization against the
seven immunizable diseases
5. all children aged 0-59 months classified as health-risk children
6. all pre- chool children 0-83 months diagnosed as second- or
third-degree malnourished and risk-children in need of
food / micronutrient supplementation
7. all sy'mptomatics for tuberculosis falling under the definition made by
the TB program and identified by health workers in consultations at the
clinic and ir, visitations to the community/ field
8. all leprosy cases from any source.

The RF is basically a data-transmission medium. I lowever, some forms are

practically extensions of the TCL because they record data that are not
person- or client-based and are therefore not included in the TCL.

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The Fl-ISIS: Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in the Philippines

Examples of this are:

1. number of patients seen with an episode of diarrhea
2. number of stool specimen examined for schistosonliasis
3. number of malaria suspects identified
4. number of streams cleared and seeded, number of bioponds
constructed, and number of houses sprayed for malari,,
5. number of services, treatments, and consultations not recorded in the
TCI. or other RF
6. number of laboratorv exams
7.   number of births
8. number of maternal, neonatal and ;tillbirth deaths; number of deaths by
age, sex and cause of death
P. population by age, se\; number of MCRA (married couple of
reproductive age)
10. iuimber of dental patients and services ren-lered
11. household survey on environmlental sanitationl
12. clinical i.Iformation and laboratory results for sexuall, transmitted
diseases.

It is really quite easy for the local governent official (I.GO) to see the
health situation of the community by examining the TCL and the Rls. Some
examples of the kind oif information that the L.GO would be able to get are
I. the client bi-se of health services identified as individuals and also
presented as demographic profiles
2. tile nat:-ire and capabilities of the health services
3. tie quality .4 health services
4.   the scope ani volume of work of the health worker, particularly the
midwife
5. the geographic reach of the midwife (it is an established fact that a
midwife visits all the barangays in her catchment area)
6. the history Of services gi. ,into each client
7.   the quantity of logistics and resources used.

In addition, there is the Summary Table (SumTab). Data in the TCI. and the
Rs art summarized in the Sumiab, which stays in the health facility, be it a
barangay health station, a rural health unit, a major health center in the city,
or an outpatient department of a government hospital. The SumTab has
twelve columns. Each column corresponds to one month of the year, and it
ct)ntains a sumlary of all the data that the midwife submitted in the RF for
that month. All the LGO needs to do in order to gauge thc performance of

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The FSIS .-
Its Role in  DccelttraliZin' Ih0alth SerVicS in the Pilippines

tilhealth facility within  his area  "...the LGO  Will... haze

of responsibility  is to study the to make a lot of major
SunTab. Of co.rse, because  the  management decisions 
SuniTab contains  raw data,  it for which 1w  will need
requires  further  processing for  other sources of
the data to ,e)ome meaningful information... 
information. the FHSIS can
...
effectivehl  reduce his
The TCL, the Sum Tab, work by half."
and the SOTs

When  an L(G. visits the  I3HS, he

will find  that  there  are  two 
documlents there  that  together  will be  able to provide  him  with a wealth  of 
information about  the  health  situation  in his communritv  :the TCL,  and  the 
Su mTab. The SiimTab,  Which is  tile data base Of  the  facility,  will be able  to 
provide him  with raw  data. This  raw  data can  in turn  be complementtd  by 
details that  can be  founl  ill the TCI..
To roun I out his und errtanding  of the Snmiab data,  the I. O can also 
refer to  the  SOT at  tile Il IS. I lowever, a better rterence document for the 
LGO)of the nunicipality wotId  b-ethe SOT prepared at  the RI  IU rather  than 
the SOT prepared  at  the  B;I IS itself. This  is because the data in  the  RI  IU SOT 
covers  tile whole municipality; therefore,  it  yields better indicators than  the 
indicators in tile BI IS  SOT.  Ill the same manner, the  better reference
document for tile provincial  ILGO wou d be  the  provincial  SOT. 

I iformation  that  can be  fot nd  in the  SOT  ilnclude :

*  year­to­date  percent  accomplishments  4f each  progran 
*  cumulative coVer'age  Of tile t,targets' or "clients" of each  program  in the
community 
*  assessment of work  to be  finished  for the  remainder  of the year 
*  number of births 
*  number of deaths and  causes of deaths. 

Armed  with  the above  information,  the IGO would be better equ,ipped to 

deal  with  the  three  aspects of health  service delivery  that  had  been  identified 
earlier :avalability of services and manpower,  quality of services  and 
manpower,  and  readiness of resources when needed.  More  specifically, the 
LGO would be  in a better  position to answer  the following questions 

...
... ..... .......
.....
. .... .. .... ....

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The FHSIS.: Its Role in DecentralizingHealth Services in the Philippines

Knowing how much more has to be "A new challeinge

covered and accomplished for the for health workers
year, how can the LGU sustain or ­­ particularlythe
make available the services and PHN and the
manpower for this year and the MHO at the
succeeding years? mnunicipal level
Knowing what services to sustain or anl the PHO and
make available, how can the LGU the program
ensure the quality of these services? coordinator;at tile 
What resources can the LGU make provinciallevel. ­-
available to guarantee die quality of 1o) lies in helping
these services? the LGO
appreciateand use
It can only be expected that the LGO tie FHSIS."
will have various other concerns and
priorities. ie will have to make a lot of
major management decisions for which
he will need other sources of
information, other systems, other
management tools. The F-ISIS can effectively reduce his work by half.
It cannot be over-emphasized that the FiSIS is a an existing system that is
immediately available to the LGO. Ile can use the system as it is, or lie can
adapt it to address his other concerns. As it is, the FlISIS already yields
health indicators useful to the LGU, such as population, births, social
hygiene, and causes of deaths. By adapting and expanding the FHSIS, it can
become even more useful. For example, the SOTs can be expanded to
include other concerns identified by the LGO. Or, other tables can be
designed so that health indicators can be examined side by side with other
LGU indicators such as financial indicators or indicators that have to do with
materials, infrastructure, peace and order, and others.

Indeed, the LGO could even eventually conclude, and rightly so,  that with
the FHSIS alone lie can get a good grasp of the health situation of the
community that he is serving. A new challenge for health workers ­-
particularly the P1IN and the MI-10 at the municipal level and the P1-10 and
the program coordinators at the provincial level. ­­ now lies in helping the
LGO appreciate and use the FHSIS.

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The FHSIS :Its

Role in Decentralizing Ihealth Serviccs in the Philippints

The FHSIS
and devolution
"The FHSIS is
an existing and
Working health
information
system that can
help 'he LGO in
the management
and provision of
health serviL.s
in the
Comnunity."

The FHSIS is an existing

and working health
information system that can
help the LGO in the management
and provision of health services in
the community. The system ­­ the
FHS!S ­­ and the tools -- the TCL,
the RFs, and the SumTab ­­ are at
the the LGO's disposal and it is up to him /
to either use them or adapt them.
In order to make the FFISIS adapt to the
changes brought about by the Local
Government Code, the Fl-ISIS technical
staff formed study teams and undertook
activities aimed at improving, simplifyir,, and
making the system more responsive and relevant to devolution. The
direction of study followed  two tracks: the outputs of the system and the
architecture of the linkages.

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Tile FHSIS: Its Role inl DecentralizingHealth Services ill

Improving and Simplifying the Output Tables

If FHSIS were a television set, the Output Tables (OTs) would be the images 
on the screen. The OTs are the tangible and usable elenents of the system
that enable the users to grasp the information that the system offers.
However, there were a couple of problems with the production of tie
OTs. First, the OTs were not available in many provinces for a long time
because of the inability of the computers to produce them. Second, for those
provinces that were tortunate enough to produce the OTs, the users found
the 0 Fs forbidding, intimidating, and generally not user-friendly. Filled
with long tables and nm1erous colunms in very small print, the OTs were
really intended to help health workers in provinces, cities, municipalities
and barangays analyze their operations and thereafter take action to
improve service delivery, supervision, monitoring and evaluation. It might
have helped if the OTs had first been produced and disseminated to all
districts and RI lUs just to get feedback for the reporting system.
The I lealth Intelligence Service ( IS) technical team worked towards
improving the OTs with these two problems in mind. Tihe team focused on
two objectives: to simplify and shorten the tables as much as possible, and to
make tie OTs generally mo;e user-fi endly. There was actuall' a third
objective, which was to reduce the over-dependence on computers in the
production of the OTs. As it turned out, this third objective was met in tie
course of attaining the first two objectives.
Since the 01's are program-oriented, it was the program managers that tie
HIS team primarily worked with. The I IIS team asked the program
managers to aim towards reducing the OTs to eight colunns or less, and this
meant drastically reducing their information roquirements. It took a series of
negotiations to design a simpler output table for each program, bur in the
end it all resulted in what are now called Simplified Output Tables or SOTs.
It must be noted that this time, in the process of designing the SOTs, the
requirements of the LGUs were taken into account.
The SOTs now average ten columns, and the text is printed in big bold
letters. The SOTs were also designed so that each one can fit into one page
measuring 8.5 by II inches, which are the dimensions of a sheet of standard
short-size bond paper. Furthernmre, the SOTs do not have to be generated or
printed by a computer. When the SOTs were shown to the PIlOs in late
1992, the unanimous agreement was that the SOTs are now indeed simpler
and more user-friendly, and that there was every reason to expect that they
will also appeal to the LGOs who will be the direct users of the system under
devolution.

24

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Tle FHSIS :Its

Role in Det'centralizing !h'alth Services inthe Philippines

Because tile SOTs are simpler, "...user-frienitly

more user-friendly, and  do not have non-compiterized
to be produced by a computer, the SOTs and tile concept
midwife can, on her own, compute of information
her facility's service indicators by processing capability
simply following procedural at the municipal level
instructions. For instance, since the  go hand in hand very
TCL and the RFs provide the Well."
year-to-date number of pregnant
women attended to and also thie
target number of pregnant "clients"
for the year, the midwife can v'ery
well compute her year-to-date accomplishment indicator for visitations to
the pregnant population. The midwife can also do this for the rest of the
SOT. It must be noted, however, that some indicators should not be
computed for the barangay alone. There are some indicators that are only
meaningful when computed for the whole municipality, or for a cluster o"
municipalities, or for the entire province.

Samples of the Simplified Output Tables can be found in Annex D.

The Linkages of the System

There remains the other direction of study that the HIS team decided to
follow at the start :the linkages of the system. The team concluded that
under devolution, the responsibility and initiative for using the system has
shifted from the health program manager to the LGO, and that it is now up
to the LGU to use the data generated by the Fl ISIS for its own decision
making process.
Nevertheless, it is heartening to note at this point that the SOTs were so
designed that they do not fall short of the still changing requirements that
are part of the conselnences of devolution. For example, the capability to
process information ­­ not necessarily computer processing ­­ is no longer a
preserve of levels abo%e the municipality, such as the province. In fact,
user-friendly non-computerized SOTs and the concept of information
processing capability at the municipal level go hand in hand very well.

90  
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The FHSIS: Its Role in DecentralizingHealth Services in the Philippines

5
The FHSIS , APBHP,
and other DOH technologies
"...there are other technologies aside from the FHSIS that
have been developed by the DOH that can also be very
usefil to the LGO."

The FHSIS is a facility-based system, and data generated by the system

mostly comes from public health facilities, notably the BHS and the RHU.
The LGO is in a position to extend the reach of the system by including data
from private or non-government units, clinics, and institutions rendering the
same services as the BHS and the RHU, and as a result get an even better
picture of the state of public health in the community, or for that matter, the
status of any specific program in the community. In addition, the LGO can
also ask for the assistance of the Health Intelligence Service (HIS) of the
DOH. Finally, there are other technologies aside from the FHSIS that have
been developed by the DOH that can also be very useful to the LGO.

The APBHP Methodology

One technology developed by the DOH that the LGO can also use is
Area/Program-Based Health Planning (APBHP). APBHP is a planning
methodology that is now extensively used by the DOH nationwife.
Although APBHP was initially developed for health planning, the LGO can
also apply its principles and processes to sectoral concerns other than health.
Decentralization is fundamental to APBHP, and it cannot but involve the
active participation of all BHS, RHU and CHO health workers and,
especially with devolution, the LGO. This was amply demonstrated just
recently, during the last three years, when all provinces and cities used the
APBHP methodology to produce health plans that passed quality standards.
APBHP relies heavily on a wide range of public health data, and it uses
the FHSIS extensively. For one thing, APBHP considers preventable causes
of mortality and morbidity top priorities; also, AIPBHP targets geographic
units with low levels of coverage for key programs and programs with low
performance ratings in the barangays. The database produced by the FHSIS

26

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The FHSIS: Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in the Philippines

is particularly useful, if not "Decentralization is

essential, for APBHP as a source of findamental to
various information inputs such as APBHP, and it cannot
causes of mortality and morbidity, but involve the active
prevalence and incidence rates, participation of all
geographic data, program BHS, RHU and CHO
performance data, and others. healthworkers and,
Much, if not all, of this data can be especially with
gathered from the FHSIS ­­ the TCL, devolution, the LGO."
the RFs, the SumTabs and the SOTs.

Other Technologies
In addition to the FHSIS and APBHP, there are still other technologies
developed by the DOHi that can also be very useful to the LGO.

" A geographic information system, which projects Fl-ISIS data and other
3ocio-economic-political data on a physical/geographic map of the
community. This computer-based system is currently being pilot-tested in
the province of Cebu and will soon be available to other LGUs.
" An infectious disease surveillance system, which is linked with the DOH
field epidemiology program. Every regional health office has a field
epidemiology unit responsible for this system. The LGO can coordinate
with this unit for any information on infectious diseases in his
community. (FlISIS has a special form for reporting notifiable diseases.)
• A hospital information system, which can be very useful to the provincial
governor, especially since all government hospitals in the province now
fall under his office.
" Household surveys, which are conducted by the National Statistics Office
in collaboration with the DOH.
" Population-based surveys or rapid assessment surveys, which are
conducted by the DOF1 on subject areas not covered by the FHSIS.
" Surveys which are conducted to validate FISIS data.

All these technologies involve data-generation activities in which the LGO

can actively participate whenever they occur within his LGU. The results of
the data-generation activities of these technologies can be very useful to the
LGO in his decision-making, just like the SOTs and the other elements of the
FHSIS.

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The FttISIS Its Role i Dot uclralizin,  IItallh srz,iccs i tilt' ll ilipl lint's

Amwx A

Sample pages of aTarget ClientList (TCL) ledger

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The FHSIS : Its Role in Decentralizing tHealth Services in til Piilippiines

CLIENT LIST FOR

PRE­NATAL
VISITS RISK 
(DATE) CODE/
ADDRESS AGE LMPIG­P  CDC (8) DATE 
DETECTED
17 FIRST  SECJ10 TIF (9
(4)  ) (5 .(6  ] TRIMESTER IRIMESTER TRIMFSIEA

PRE-NATAL CARE 4T  "'an

PRENANCY LIVE811
TAILS S~TWIIO  A  ______  5)
ATE TTIMMUNI- ELIGIBLE OTHER DATE
LIVED) ZATIONGIVEN FOR  rFAP FOOD  IRON  IODINE TRMI  OUTCOME REIGT  PELIVE
10)) (12) SOURCE NATED E 

I  {
,_______
_____  I______ C...
CLIENT LIST FOR FAMILY PLANNING
NETHOD TYPE PRE1OUS
N1S NAME  ADDRESS  &CEPITO  OF MIETHOD
C.414.  
3) U61 07I T  2

-_--_
-----

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The FHSIS Its Role in Decentralizing1-ialith Services in tile Philippines

Annex B

List of FHSIS Reports/Forms (RFs)

Upon occurrence of event

FISIS/E-I Notification of Death Form
FI ISIS/ F-2 Maternal Death Report
FI ISIS/E-3 Verinatal Death Report

Weekly
FI ISIS/ W- I \Weeklv Report of Notifiable Diseases

Mon0i liY
:L ISIS/ M-I Mthh' Field I Iealth Services Activity Report
Ffl SIS/M-2 Monthlv Natality Report
F1ISIS/%1-3 Monthlh Mortality Report
:1 ISIS/Ml -4 Monthlv aIboratory Report
FH \onthh, DSIS/M-5
Dental lealth Service Report
FlIISIS/M-- Fani 'lanning Subsidized Surgical Procedure Report
Ft ISIS/M-7 Monthly Social Hygiene Clinic Activity Report

Quarterly
FI ISIS/Q- I Quarterly Field Ilealth Services Activity Report
FI ISIS/Q-2 Quarterly Dental Facility Inspection Report
Fl ISIS/Q-3 Quarterly Report of Environmental Health Activities
Ft1SIS/Q-4 Quarterly Report of Malaria Control Activities
FI tSIS/Q-5 Drugs and Supplies Quarterly Status Report
F lSIS/Q-6 Laboratory Supplies Quarterly Status Report

Annui o
F ISIS/A- I Annual Catchment Area OPT Tally Sheet & Summary Report
F[ ISIS/A-I Annual Catchment Area Population Survey Form
F ISIS/ A-2 Annual Catchment Area Population Summary Report
Fl-ISIS/A-2 Annual Catchment Area Or Form
FHSIS/A-3 Annual I household Environmental Sanitation Report
FIHSIS/A-3 Annual ,Environmental Household Survey Form
FI ISIS/A-4 Annual Nutrition Report: Food Supplementation

---------
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The FHSIS: Its Role in DecentralizingHealth Services in the Philippines

Annex B 

Samples of FHSIS Reports/Forms(RFs)

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The FHSIS: Its Role in DecentralizingHealth Services in the Philippines

IC'PARTMET OF HFALTI FORM FIISIA/R- I

MOINTIhYr  I,) IfAIFTI SfVRVIC AC
CTIVITY REPORT

Iodl-te Neoe Code

P NUI I En EMJ EM 
M.L Year
CITYI
CChbck  ()o one lx, ledl,­et,   mrnt R.e r 

7 Rl-SIRs;C, .. I 1_-- II,/C .I I' '

C tch  RCCC/C,,C,
_ .E ] I  '.ll/C-,CC.
. .
[771~~~~~~  RIC/IrRE  '  I~I E 
S-t' 1-n 1 - PR :-NATAt, CARE.

l PrPn I.
l t .v| by typo o{ -iqnn-'y p- -1ral, I ik, rink lt rd ,
trIPitan,]vst uh r
C()R
TI1- A. RISK  RISK  RIt"FROR
mrSTER-1. Int 2nd '1 3r Id L 2nd lId let 2nd I d

11
I2nd

VIGI I.---

Itd

Visit.  f umbe.  Of poet-p~r-tum hoi  visits ead.

2.   Tttenu, nje
TCI
. 
j
pecarn - POh, IAII, l

usher  of  von reaching  6weeks post.

FAo
I Ior f pr I usber  of. n receivingiat least one
POat-part Is ho.. vi It thi Onth 
IRON

4. Nuber of x.--en
whu han. initiated
br eteding this sooth

S. Number of  eother eligible and thos receivingthis s nth

TFAP OrS VIT. A IRON

Eligible

R lc iv rnri
-

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The FHSIS : Its Role in DecentralizingHealth Services in the Philippines

Annex C

Sample pages of a Summary Table (SumTab)

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The FHSIS: Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in tile Philippines

­ FHSIS  SUMMARY  FWEOR~T- ­ ­-

~ ~~TARGET' JAN. FEB MARI APH., MAY JUNE JULY AUG V C

:' FHSIS SUMMARY REPOT

CH,. , TAGET JN.FEP AR PR. MAY UNEJUL UG SET OCT, WyO,.
;O ;

. 1A R-

L A

.....

"~~ ~~ HISSMMR 5
RPR

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The FHSIS: Its Role in Decenlralizig Health Servics in the Philippines

5 C.,S1SL.MM
F 1 \-", ! .". I

L ,,L.,,,E r GEcLT JAN .ER W.All A ! /,, "i  , , . - .", %

, I U

- F - F. . .

)AL CARE TAIIGET JAN. FEaRMAR

APR MAY 1JUNEJU Y1'

- ...................... - ..
..
-
1---1..

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The FHSIS : Its Role in DecentralizingHealth Services in the Philippines

Annex D

Samples of Simplified Output Tables (SOTs)

,4
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The FHSIS: Its Role in Decentnlizing th'alth Services in the Philippines

PRE­NATAL  
ACCOMPLISHMENT REPORT  

(Rug-o or Naniu oFIoince a Mo.cIpakly)

POPULATION PREGNANTWOMEN  %OF ST VISITS PR
AREA  OFPREGNANT  SEENFIST  VISITI  IN THE 1ST SEMESTER  SEE
WOMEN  OF PREGNANCY P
NUMBER %ACCOMP NUMBER  %ACCOMP NUMB 
YTD YTD YTD YTD YO
T P 35 COI. Col 5

Co42 Cl 3
(2) 13111 (4) (5) (6 (

T QUARTER_

{Re".n N-i .1
ofprolc. . Muncp.Hy)

PREGNtANTWOMEN % OF IST VISITS PREGNANT WOMEN PRIEGNANTWOMEN

T S5EEN(1ST VISIT) IN THE 1ST SEMESTER SEEN ON THEIRJRD WHOHAVE TT2.
FPREGNANCY PRE.NATALVISIT IM..UNI AT.14

NtUMBER % ACCOMP NUMBER % ACCOMP N'JMBER %/.ACCOMP NUMB}ER % ACCOMP

YTD YTD YTO YTD YTD YID YTO YTO

CotIr C.15 C.17! col w'
Col 2 C.1 3 Col2 Col2
(3) (4) ( ) 6) (7) ( ) ( ) ( 0

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The FHSIS: Its Role in Decentralizing Health Services in the Philippines

E P, ACCOMPUSHMENT EPORT

A(R og ponm N- mo f P roovn ea M- p ahty) N

IMMUNIZATION GIVEN  CHILDREN  BCCSCH

AREA  TOOTHERAGES  OVER I YR ENTRAN
COMPLETELY  GIVEN
BCG DPT3 OPV3  MEASLES IMMUNIZED IMMUNIZATI1 
NO YTD NOYT NOYT NOYTD NOYTD NOYTD 
(t_ _(2)  (3) 4) (51 (6) (7)

_ QOUARTER
_
(R.9-on o, N-,e ot PRon- o, Mu pahty)
I tNIZATiONGIVEN C--HILDREN BTCGSCHOOL CILDREN CHILDREN 0-1
OOTHER AGES OVER1 YR ENTRANTS 0- GIVEN GIVENVlT A
/COMPLETELY GIVEN HEPA B}3 DURINGMEASLESI
)PT3 CPV3 IMEASLES IMMUNIZED IMNZTO IMUZAON MUIAIN
Y'T NOYTD dOYTO NOYTD NO YTD NO YTD NO YTD

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