COVID-19

Global Good Adaptations to COVID-19

The following table summarizes the adaptions made by global goods to support COVID-19 response activities. These updates are provided by our global good partners and updated regularly.

Last update: February 5, 2021

Global Good	Adaptation	Resources
Digital Health Atlas	As part of the global COVID19 response, the WHO has enhanced the Digital Health Atlas to provide support for governments and investors focused on scaling effective digital health implementations. Key features: 1. Enhanced MOH pages, able to store reference documents of national relevance (policies, investment plans, maturity assessments, etc) 2. Documentation of Project Phases providing DHA users with insights regarding the progress of a project along the software development life cycle (from ideation to scaled implementation) 3. Facilitating the labeling and description of multi-country deployments as "Global Initiatives". 4. Facilitating the labeling of a project as research-focused and time-bound, allowing researchers to share time-critical insights and progress into Covid-19 and digital health directly with Ministries of Health and Investors	Digital Health Atlas
OpenHIE COVID-19 Task Force (Cross-cutting for all global goods)	Identify and collate information relating to data standards and exchange relevant to the COVID-19 response. Identify gaps in and establish standards for data exchange priorities. Provide documentation and guidance (to both the global good community as well as proprietary software tools) to improve adherence to these standards. Ensure that rapidly deployed solutions can be integrated into the national digital health architectures. Outputs: HL7 FHIR profile / implementation guide for case reporting & contact tracing.	Weekly calls Wiki Discourse Data Models for COVID-19 Tools
Bahmni	In Nepal, Bahmni has been adapted for COVID-19 response in a few government hospitals: Creation of a COVID-19 screening template Data is synced in near-real time to dashboards.	Updating NepalEHR in response to COVID19 (web article) Nepal COVID-19 Dashboard
CommCare	Creation of a template application which provides a full implementation of the WHO FFX Contact Tracing protocol which is available for immediate adoption and customization through the platform. Currently working on ensuring that there is a wide array of translations available for the text. Working on additional template applications for further response and recovery workflows that will become available as they are validated. The team is trying to secure free messaging for COVID-19 response to support self-reporting workflows for positive cases once cases overcome the tracing capacity of health systems. CommCare will be releasing a WhatsApp integration in the near future.	Read how CommCare is being adapted for COVID Vaccine Deployment Wiki Projects tackling COVID-19 can access free full subscriptions. A video demo and write-up of data models and workflows are available in the app. Contact information and to request template apps: covid19@dimagi.com
Community Health Toolkit (CHT)	Developing CHT reference applications as starter apps for implementers to contextualize, and readily deploy and scale for their needs. These are as follows: Surveillance and Detection: Port of Entry Screening, Event-Based Surveillance, Contact Tracing, and Community-Based Symptom Screening Apps and systems Patient Care: Rapid Diagnostic Testing App, Referral systems, and Isolation Messaging systems, and Protecting Community Health Workers: PPE Projections and Daily Health Checks Accompaniment through secondment of technical staff, supporting our colleagues in Ministries of Health. Continue expanding the use cases and workflows supported by the CHT for COVID-19 response efforts. Coordination with the wider digital health community between existing digital health tools, systems, and standards.	The CHT Team has created two use case demonstrations: Port of Entry (PoE Screening and CHT Rapid Diagnostic Teat (RDT) workflow for community health workers. PoE demo RDT demo Medic Mobile's Response
DHIS2	DHIS2 has several ready-to-install digital data packages to support COVID-19 surveillance & response based on WHO guidelines. All packages are optimized for Android or web-based data collection. The COVID-19 digital data package includes standard metadata aligned with the WHO’s technical guidance on COVID-19 surveillance and case definitions and implementation guidance to enable rapid deployment in countries. Ready-to-install DHIS2 digital data packages to support COVID-19 surveillance & response based on WHO guidelines. All packages are optimized for Android or web-based data collection. The packages support: 1) Case-based Surveillance: DHIS2 has released a digital data package to accelerate case detection, situation reporting, active surveillance and response for COVID-19. The package is inspired by the Ministry of Health Sri Lanka’s pioneering design of DHIS2 tracker for COVID-19 case detection and draws on years of collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop information system standards for case-based disease surveillance.; 2) Contact tracing program to facilitate operations of contact tracing and with built in relationships to the case-based tracker for enhanced analysis; 3) Ports of entry screening and follow up 4) Automated analysis of core indicators & dashboards for response planning. The package also includes options for aggregate and event-based surveillance; countries can transition between data models according to realities on the ground while still capturing most critical data points. Team has created training materials and videos for the above configurations Packages translations are now available in French, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Russian and Norwegian. Additional languages can be added on demand. Existing immunization registries can rapidly be adapted for COVID vaccine deployment. Information on the immunization registries can be found here The newly released DHIS2 Vaccine Delivery Toolkit can be found here.	Main page Video demos of key features and workflows Interactive demo DHIS2 Community of Practice COVID-19 Information User stories from national implementations Packages are accompanied by System Design Documentation and Installation Guides Metadata mapping to WHO COVID-19 Metadata Dictionary election Sessions from DHIS2 September 2020 Annual Meeting. Plenary on global Covid-19 response, National and regional Covid-19 implementations, Francophone Covid-19 presentations Building eIDSR in Sierra Leone, Norway Covid-19 response, Local Covid-19 innovations - local apps, Measuring the impact disease outbreaks, and Strengthening disease surveillance beyond Covid-19 Contact info: covid@dhis2.org
Logistimo	Logistimo SCM has been adapted to include data capture for the COVID-19 supply chain (about 70 products and equipment), which has been deployed across a few states in India. Additional data capture available for supplies to laboratories for tests. Logistimo has created specific COVID-19 dashboards (that we call bulletin boards) which help in easy surveillance for control towers. Several partners have been assessing how effectively COVID-19 bio-medical waste is being handled and disposed using Logistimo Snapshot.	Logistimo COVID-19 updates
GOFR	Overview of GOFR tool for facility reconciliation	Facility Match
mHero	Deployed in Liberia in support of the COVID-19 response. New mHero architecture has been developed. Adding additional features including: COVID-19 disease surveillance workflows Ability to send messages from any FHIR compliant database such as OpenMRS Ability to update any FHIR compliant database with new respondent information Ability to respond to messages via WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger	mHero website
Mobile WACh	Provide up-to-date guidance by SMS (push messaging) on symptoms, social distancing, and care-seeking to the general population, as well as HCWs in need of guidance. Provide interactive triage of patient symptoms by 2-way SMS with a HCW, based on international guidance to determine whether and how patients should seek care, and avoid unnecessary risk and strain on the medical system. Continue supporting pregnant and postpartum women, neonates and people living with HIV or other chronic conditions with SMS curricula we have already developed at a time when they will experience even more pronounced shortages of in-person medical care.	Mobile WACh on the University of Washington website
ODK	ODK's lead developer, Nafundi, is offering pro-bono help to anyone working on the COVID-19 response. Rapidly digitizing forms from the WHO and CDC protocols and making them available for others to use and build on. Offering support for ODK for contact tracing, decision support, community education, strategic mapping, and case management. Demo available on how the WHO minimum reporting form running in ODK Collect (Android) and Enketo (Web) send data to an ODK Central server, which then flows data to a live updating dashboard in PowerBI and a spreadsheet in Excel.	Request for pro-bono help WHO COVID-19 Minimum Reporting Form demo Contact info: yanokwa@nafundi.com
OpenConcept Lab	Published a value set, "COVID-19 Starter Set," based on the Columbia International eHealth Laboratory (CIEL) interface terminology Rushed multiple large terminology curation and import processes to support publication of this value set.	CIEL COVID-19 Starter Set
OpenELIS	OpenELIS Global has added COVID-19 metadata for laboratory testing and resulting, including LOINC codes for interoperability via HL7 2.5. Metadata will be included in the default test catalog with the next release of OpenELIS. Users can immediately use the Administration Menu: Test Management function in the software to add tests for the corona virus (SARS-CoV-2) to their laboratory test catalog to facilitate tracking of laboratory tests and results.	To learn more about the OpenELIS adaptations for Covid-19, visit the OpenELIS website. Installation instructions Laboratory guidance from the World Health Organization Laboratory guidance from the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention
OpenHIM	Coming soon - generic support for COVID-19 data exchange with the OpenHIM by extending the OpenHIM Mapping Mediator offerings, supporting a range of use cases around case reporting, surveillance and contact tracing that require an exchange of data between information systems. OpenHIM will support standardized data schema that supports the WHO standards, and in turn FHIR.	OpenHIM.org Presentation on OpenHIM adaptation for COVID-19
openIMIS	openIMIS was customized to act as a management information system to manage a government to people cash transfer scheme as a part of the COVID-19 response of the Government of The Gambia. openIMIS has been used to enrol beneficiary households into the system and keep track of the payments being made to these households. The scheme currently covers 80,000 households in The Gambia, but is slated for a nationwide scaleup soon, and it is anticipated that the openIMIS based tool will be continued to be used for the management.	A detailed description of the adaptation can be found on the openIMIS wiki.
OpenLMIS	OpenLMIS is responding by supporting OpenLMIS countries to optimize their use of the software to encourage good supply chain management of COVID supplies. A separate, simplified OpenLMIS instance has been launched called OpenLMIS COVID-19 Edition, which is a lighter weight and quicker start up tool to help countries get started right away to manage COVID-related commodities (based on the WHO product list). In addition, the OpenLMIS team continues to conduct outreach to existing users to ensure they know how to quickly: Add new Products Initiate emergency requisitions Configure and manage inventory of Kits (anticipating the need for COVID kits) The OpenLMIS core team will prioritize any configuration or work related to these functions. Future product committee meetings could be used to share lessons across countries to see how they are preparing their supply chains for COVID.	Updated wiki with OpenLMIS COVID-19 Edition Information YouTube Demo Video of OpenLMIS COVID-19 Edition OpenLMIS webiste USAID Global Health Supply Team COVID-19 Brief
OpenMRS	The OpenMRS community's goal is to support extension of current functionality that will make it easier for 5,500 existing implementations to a) screen, test, and manage patients and b) report data out efficiently to DHIS2 for public health surveillance. Active COVID-19 Response Squad is working to identify existing work within the OpenMRS community that can be rapidly adapted by implementers and packaged as a suite of COVID-19 Public Health Response Tools. Informatics experts, business analysts, UI/UX designers, developers, and implementers are encouraged to join the conversation, weekly meetings, design forums, and work with the COVID-19 Response Squad. The following OpenMRS COVID-19 Public Health Response Tools under development and discussion include: CIEL concept dictionary with COVID-19 concepts COVID-19 Public Health Response Module COVID-19 Public Health Reporting System Interfaces Standard content related to COVID-19 included in the recent release of Reference Application 2.10.0.	OpenMRS COVID-19 Public Health Response Project Page OpenMRS Talk: COVID-19 Open Concept Lab presentation of CIEL's COVID terminology
OpenSRP/Akuko/Canopy	Develop use of Ona Data/RapidPro + Canopy for secondary response. Create OpenSRP/Reveal and an RDT reader for contact tracing and Akuko data storytelling platform for data viz platform for information sharing. Working with clients in Malawi government to adapt the ODP module for COVID-19 in the future	Ona website
Reveal	Modified forms to incorporate COVID-related data Modifications completed for the planning module to support Reveal's ability to get resources to vulnerable populations (food aid, economic aid, sanitation resources as well as routine health resources), which is crucial given the quarantine and lock-down restrictions many countries are facing. Support to attain high vaccination coverage achieving last mile delivery	Reveal Precision
SORMAS	Ensuring availability of validated real time surveillance data which would in turn lower the disease burden through enabled contact tracing while monitoring the potential for future cases. Offering easy-to-use, multifunctional mobile health (mHealth) and electronic health (eHealth) applications, which provide real-time data availability and compatibility with standard surveillance systems.	Demo version of SORMAS

COVID-19 Community Coordination

Digital Square is pleased to share resources sourced from the Digital Health Community to facilitate alignment and coordination in the COVID-19 response, and to support countries choosing digital tools to aid in their own response efforts. If you have a resource you would like us to host on the wiki, please contact Amanda BenDor.

UNICEF Country Mapping for COVID-19 Response

UNICEF has initiated a country mapping of relevant Digital Health solutions that can be leveraged to support frontline health workers in their response to COVID-19 and that can be used by countries to support Risk Communication and Community Engagement on COVID-19. The mapping can be accessed here. If you want to update the country mapping, please use the comment function and the UNICEF team will update the information accordingly.

Likewise, a partnership landscaping has also been done to map where implementing partners are working to support digital tools for frontline health workers and which digital solutions they are supporting. This mapping can be accessed here. If your organization is missing from the partnership landscaping, you can add the information directly in the spread sheet.

Both these mapping tools are free to use by anyone who wish to know which solutions already exist at country level and that can be deployed for frontline health workers for COVID-19 response and recovery efforts.

Comparison of Digital Tools used in the COVID-19 Response

Countries have access to a large, complex ecosystem of digital platforms that can support COVID-19 response. The process of selecting the most appropriate platform for a country's specific needs or context can be overwhelming without clear information about the benefits and limitations of the options. Several new resources have been developed to support in-country assessment and decisions about digital technologies for COVID response.

Johns Hopkins assessment

In July 2020, Johns Hopkins published an assessment of digital platforms that have an established presence in several low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), and either have been or could be rapidly reconfigured to address COVID-19 related case management and contact tracing needs. The assessment includes a review of the following tools: CommCare, Community Health Toolkit (CHT), DHIS2 Tracker, Go.Data, ODK, OpenSRP, RapidPro, SORMAS, and WelTel. The platforms were selected based on their existing deployment, flexibility, and adaptability for COVID-19 use cases, their ability to support multiple languages, and stakeholder interest in how these applications can be leveraged in response to COVID-19. The full report can be accessed here.

Digital Square efforts

In recognition that this is a rapidly evolving landscape, Digital Square has been working across donors to collate a comparison of digital tools that are currently used in the COVID-19 response. Included in the comparison is an analysis of a number of functional and non-functional requirements. Including in this document are the following digital health tools: DHIS2, SORMAS, Go.Data, EpiInfo, CommCare, ODK, Kobo Toolbox, Excel and non-digital paper tools. This comparison is a dynamic document meant for community updates that can be accessed here. If you would like to make updates including adding additional tools or information to tools included, please contact Carl Fourie.

Map & Match

The USAID-funded Map & Match project helps countries, donors, implementing partners, and the global digital health community at large to leverage and adapt existing digital tools in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As the world learned during the West Africa Ebola outbreak response, prioritizing the reuse and adaptation of existing digital tools is vital to quickly scale access to time-sensitive disease information and data. Find Map & Match resources on the Digital Square website here.

• In March 2021, Digital Square published the Digital Applications and Tools Across an Epidemiological Curve. This resource provides a strategic framework for governments, investors, implementing organizations, and the digital health community to better understand how existing digital tools can be adapted and used during different phases of an outbreak.

Country Support

Mali

With funding from USAID Mali, Digital Square is working closely with the Mali Ministry of Health and partners such as CDC, Gavi, UNICEF and Global Fund to support adaptation and scale of digital health tools to support the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine. Through the end of 2021, Digital Square is specifically supporting the following activities:

1. Adapt and scale existing health information systems for COVID-19 vaccine rollout to enable real-time monitoring of vaccine availability and vaccine coverage.
2. Support MOH to transition existing paper-based systems to digital platforms (focus on digital tools for monitoring adverse side effects).
3. Harness digital tools to identify and locate persons eligible for vaccination.
4. Identify tools and applications to be made interoperable.
5. Contribute to an evaluation of a vaccination campaign in Bamako.

For more information on these activities or to coordinate with the Digital Square team, please contact Caitlin Bowman.

Additional COVID Resources

COVID-19 Webinars

October 28, 2020 | Global Good COVID-19 Adaptations Part III (OpenLMIS and OpenELIS)

This webinar focuses on how both OpenLMIS and OpenELIS have adapted their technologies to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Find the slides here
• Watch the recording

October 7, 2020 | Global Good COVID-19 Adaptations Part II (DHIS2 and mHero)

This webinar focuses on how both DHIS2 and mHero have adapted their technologies to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Find the slides here
• Watch the recording

June 16, 2020 | Can Image-based AI Meaningfully Impact COVID-19 Response in Low Resource Settings

This webinar explores the opportunities and challenges for the use of imaged-based AI tools in the COVID-19 response. Panelists discuss the broader context for the application of these tools; explore how they are being developed and evaluated; and identify what steps need to be taken to maximize the potential of image-based AI while mitigating the risks.

• Watch the recording

June 15, 2020 | Understanding the Unique Challenges & Opportunities of Combating COVID-19 in LMICs

• Find the slides here
• Watch the recording

April 30, 2020 | Private Sector Digital Adaptations for COVID-19 Response

In this webinar, leaders from the Digital Impact Alliance, Facebook, mClinica, Microsoft, and Tableau shared how to leverage private sector tools and technologies to strengthen health systems in COVID-19 response efforts.

• Find the slides here
• Watch the recording

April 7, 2020 | Managing the Global COVID-19 Pandemic with Health Informatics

In partnership with AMIA, this webinar shares informatics responses and challenges within the COVID-19 pandeimc.

• Find the slides here
• Watch the recording

March 30, 2020 | Global Goods Adaptation for COVID-19 Response Part I

This webinar features a set of Digital Square-approved digital health global goods that have adapted their technologies to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Find the slides here

March 26, 2020 | Re-utilizing PEPFAR Investments during the COVID-19 Response This webinar showcases how PEPFAR investments can be re-utilized in the COVID-19 response. During this session, we will feature a mix of digital tools including DATIM, Patient Level Monitoring, and the Global Open Facility Registry, and how they can be harnessed in the COVID-19 global response.

• Find the slides here

Digital Square Web Articles

• Global Goods Addressing Outbreaks: SORMAS and COVID-19
• LEGO lessons for COVID-19: Making data click
• Will COVID-19 accelerate digital transformation? 5 ways the development community can "build back better"
• Using DHIS2 for COVID-19 point of entry screening and travel pass printing in Uganda