Developing health centres and hospital s indices for Syria, based on HeRAMS dataset 2014

World Health Organization (2017) C_WHO
This research paper uses the Health Resources and services Availability Mapping System (HeRAMS) database to develop two composite indices – one for health centres and one for hospitals – in order to analyse and assess the health facilities’ performance across time and to evaluate the disparities among regions in the Syrian Arab Republic. The indices will provide an evidence-based tool for the main actors in the health sector to identify gaps, to intervene accordingly and to assess the impact of their interventions on the health system. The process of constructing the indices includes description and selection of variables, application of normalization techniques and weighting methods, and sensitivity analysis. A literature review, analysis of the scope of the HeRAMS database, analysis of the crisis situation, data limitation and expert consultations were the main aspects of the construction process of the indices.