Felt need for evidence-based policy decisions have increased demand for quality data on population and health for use by all stake holders like policy formulators, program managers and implementers for micro as well as macro planning at all levels like state, district and sub-district levels. With this background objective the Health Management Information System (HMIS) unit has been instituted at the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare. The stated objective necessitates capacity building, collection and collation of quality health services data, feedback and dissemination of reports and bulletins at all levels. The HMIS unit is mandated to improve the quality of data through capacity building at state, district and sub-district levels.

The unit purports to strengthen basically all the critical components like

i) Sensitization and capacity building right up to the grass roots level (ANM/ASHA) and data entry operator, the level at which the data gets generated and transmitted.

ii) Ensuring the coverage, quality, relevance and reliability of the data so that the information available through HMIS is effectively used for health management.

iii) Analysis, timely dissemination and feedback on the information available through the system. For the purpose the unit would proceed with capacity building of key medical and para-medical and data management personnel involved with HMIS at all levels viz. facility, block, district and state throughout India under NRHM.

The unit also intends to integrate the capacity building process with most of the training programmes of medical and para-medical personnel at the NIHFW.