Having studied and practised in healthcare systems and digital health, I called this SHA "digital superhighway" what it is: a long con. This government, and the Ministry of Health in particular, is confused.
The only explanation is that a mythical "digital superhighway" was branded under SHA to milk the billions being thrown around (KSh 104 billion). It's like Medicare and Medicaid mysteriously morphing into a hospital information system. It's ridiculous.
Second, for the sake of interoperability, HMIS should be left to the private sector. Counties and hospitals should run their own systems, integrated into a national government platform through APIs. The government has no business forcing every health facility onto its own HMIS. It is not best placed to provide a robust and secure one.
When I say this government is riddled with incompetence, the evidence is out there for everyone to see. There was never a way SHA, a financing pillar, was going to deliver an HMIS. The digital superhighway was a scam and a mediocre pipe dream. They've now realised that, and the new announcements mean only one thing: more money.
Running a health ministry should be one of the easiest jobs in the world, because the blueprints and frameworks are universal.
This is why Kasongo must go home.