The document summarizes ICT tools implemented by the Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme, including iPath (a telemedicine platform), openMEDIS (medical equipment inventory software), and a perinatal registry. It describes how the open-source tools were developed and implemented in Ukraine, providing statistics on their use. Implementation has faced some human challenges but the tools have proven effective in low-resource settings when properly planned and supported administratively.

1. ICT Tools implemented as part of the
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child
Health Programme
Grigory NAUMOVETS
ICT Coordinator
Programme Implementation Office
Kyiv, Ukraine
CURRENT ISSUES IN DISTANCE LEARNING AND TELEMEDICINE
Kyiv – Zaporizhya Videoconference
October 2012

2. Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
Implemented in four regions:
Vinnytsia, Volyn,
Ivano-Frankivsk, Crimea
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3. ICT Tools implemented in Ukraine
by the MCH Programme:
iPath:
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
a Telemedicine platform
openMEDIS:
medical equipment inventory software
Perinatal registry:
database of information related to
pregnancy and childbirths
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4. All these tools are:
 Developed at the University of Basel and Swiss
TPH Institute
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
 Open source software, no license fees required
 Web-based tools (Apache/PHP/MySQL)
accessible via web interface
 Work for any operating system
 Simple, user-friendly, multilingual
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5. iPath Telemedicine Platform
 Designed for asynchronous (store-and-
forward) telemedicine
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
 Does not require simultaneous availability of all
parties for real-time communication
 Cases and comments can be posted by e-mail
 E-mail alerts about new cases and replies
 Standardized templates for case submission and
description
 Very low requirements to hardware and
bandwidth
 Can be used for distance education.
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6. iPath:
implementation in Ukraine
 Started in 2003 as part of the Ukraine-Swiss perinatal
health project
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
 Pilot institutions: Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Children
Hospital and Institute of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and
Gynecology (Kyiv)
 Since 2009, the Ukrainian iPath platform has been
running on a server in Donetsk operated by Association
for Ukrainian Telemedicine and eHealth Development
 Used by more than 80 partner institutions in 4 regions –
and by many other users in Ukraine and abroad
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7. iPath Ukraine (telemed-ipath.org.ua)
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
Ukrainian iPath server in Donetsk:
> 1,000 users,
> 10 groups,
> 1,000 cases posted 7

8. openMEDIS: a simple and flexible tool for
medical equipment inventory
 Helps health care managers to keep track of the
equipment and make appropriate administrative
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
decisions
 Integration of UMDNS nomenclature, generic device
lists, supplier database, etc.
 Summary graphs for better visualization
 Interfaces for data import, export, and merge
 Can work over the Internet, in the Intranet, or on a local
computer not connected to any network
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9. openMEDIS: evaluate the status of your equipment
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
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10. openMEDIS: Implementation in Ukraine
 At the first stage, was introduced in 22 oblast-
and rayon-level partner institutions;
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
>8,000 items were entered in the database;
 Currently is being introduced in >50 partner
institutions in 4 regions of Ukraine.
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11. Perinatal registry
 Software tool that supports health care providers in
managing high risk pregnant women.
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
 Electronic database collecting and evaluating relevant
information related to pregnancy and childbirth
(obstetrical history, risk factors, test outcomes, etc.)
 Information on patients and pregnancies, their visits to
the facility, tests, medication prescribed, hospitalizations,
on deliveries and newborns.
 Helps making both medical and administrative decisions
(e.g. can estimate number or visits or deliveries
expected for specific days/weeks, etc.)
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12. Perinatal registry
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
• Using electronic keys + login/password to
prevent unauthorised access
• Limited permissions for most users 12

13. Perinatal registry:
implementation
in Ukraine
 Pilot stage: tested in two partner institutions in
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
Volyn oblast, ~700 patients entered;
 Updates and adaptations in collaboration with
Ukrainian consultants and programmers;
 Now – implementation in all other rayons of
Volyn; a series of trainings in September –
October 2012.
 Testing in other regions.
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14. ICT Tools: Experience of implementation
 Are viable and effective in low resource settings
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
 Human issues may be more limiting than
technical issues
 Implementation should follow a properly planned
procedure, and requires administrative support.
Training – importance of ToT.
 MCH Programme is working in close
collaboration with Ukrainian institutions to
endure long-term sustainability.
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15. Fruitful collaboration with NMAPO
in the field of medical ICT
 Videoconferencing (MS Lync)
 Development of e-Learning modules (new
modules are under preparation now)
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
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16. Web resources
 Swiss TPH eHealth Toolbox
http://www.swisstph.ch/services/ehealth/ehealth-toolb
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
 Ukrainian iPath Telemedicine server:
http://telemed-ipath.org.ua
 Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health
Programme http://motherandchild.org.ua
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17. Contacts
Ukrainian-Swiss Mother and Child Health Programme
http://motherandchild.org.ua/ukr/contacts
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