Designing and Developing a Model for Business Intelligence in Disease Surveillance for the Namibian Public Healthcare Sector

Business Intelligence (BI) in the healthcare sector has taken up in recent years in many countries. This advanced intelligent technology approach is increasingly being adopted in Namibia as well. However, the adoption of this technology in Namibias healthcare sector is still relatively new and facing challenges. BI is about analysing data for more informed decision-making. It would be an ideal technology to adopt in Namibias healthcare sector, particularly because there are so much data stored in the silo health information systems (HIS) that Namibian public hospitals are hosting. With silo systems, real time access to up-to-date data is difficult when they are needed for decision-making. BI techniques have the potential to provide an effective computation environment in Namibias healthcare sector, especially in the area of disease surveillance. The aim of this study is to come up with a BI model for disease surveillance in Namibia. The first phase of the study is qualitative, applying an interpretive approach. Interviews and questionnaires will be conducted with health administrators and decision-makers on the status quo on access to BI information in Namibias healthcare institutions. In the second phase of the research, a Design Science Research approach will be adopted resulting in the design of a BI model for disease surveillance in Namibia.