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PAHO Rep. stresses crucial importance of data management
“If we do not manage the data, then someone will mismanage it,” were the words of wisdom offered by Resident Representative of the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), Dr William Adu-Krow, to the
The PAHO meeting in progress yesterday.
Ministers of Public Health yesterday.
The occasion was a strategically planned meeting orchestrated by PAHO in order to orient the Ministers, Drs George Norton and Karen Cummings, along with Acting Permanent Secretary, Mr Trevor Thomas, with the mode of collaboration between the two entities. The meeting was convened at the Brickdam, Georgetown headquarters.
Dr Adu-Krow in emphasising the importance of data underscored yesterday too that data not used within two years can in fact be regarded as useless even as he noted that “sometimes a lovely document is done, but it is of no use if it is going to sit on someone’s desk and not see the day of light.”
“Sometimes, yes, the data can be used, but if data comes up and then you keep it for three years, four years and then the fifth year, it comes up the dynamics may have changed,” Dr Adu-Krow asserted as he appealed to the health officials to guard against possible delays with data.
In fact the PAHO Representative made it clear yesterday that his organisation, which has the capacity to support the Public Health Ministry, cannot in any way render needful assistance without the availability of data.
And there is nothing to fear in availing data, as according to him, “we have a rule in PAHO we do not share Government’s data with anybody and we do not compare data with another Government’s data.”
This rule was one crafted by PAHO/WHO Member States, Dr Adu-Krow said as he pointed out that they had particularly appealed for the non-disclosure when the Health in the Americas publication was being undertaken.
“They did not want countries to be compared with one another because each one is different…so the data we collect are not for our own purpose; it is information bits that we need to help advise Governments better,” noted the PAHO Representative.
But should there be forthcoming comments that suggest that PAHO has misused the local Ministry’s data, Dr Adu-Krow disclosed that “there are other means that we can go through if data that is shared with PAHO is abused.”
Among the tactics to secure data made available to PAHO is opting to classify data as “PAHO use only” and therefore such data cannot be cited outside of the organisation. “When that happens it means that we use that data to help work with you (Ministry); we cannot publish it, we cannot transmit it.”
According to Dr Adu-Krow, any data that is eventually published on the World Health Organisation (WHO) website is first approved by the respective Governments. He assured that no data is deemed publishable until the requisite procedure is followed. This entails PAHO writing to the Permanent Secretary, after which the Ministry authorises its own personnel to compile the needed data which must be cleared before it is submitted to PAHO and then WHO in Geneva, Switzerland, for the purpose of publication.
Stressing the importance of data disclosure, Dr Adu-Krow observed that it is always better to publish authentic data than to allow persons the privilege of publicising that which is less than bona fide.
The views of the PAHO Representative were yesterday readily accepted by the health officials.
According to Senior Public Health Minister, Dr Norton, he has long been aware that “when you prevent data from being exposed you create that suspicion that something is being covered up, and I cannot agree (to that).”
He continued by sharing his conviction that even the exposure of bad data can only be a move towards the path of working towards good data. He therefore committed his Ministry to addressing the situation of availing data belatedly, even as he insisted that “we cannot do the work like before…I don’t think we should ever limit the use of data.”
However, a glaring challenge that the Ministry is currently faced with is a reduced data entry staff. Both Minister Norton and Permanent Secretary Thomas, made reference yesterday to the fact that the Ministry’s data entry department was formerly 17-strong, but now there are a mere two staff members.
“Probably the effort is there, but we need to change something, otherwise we would cry out for data and not have anything,” Minister Norton stated.
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