For the complete DHIS2 documentation index, see llms.txt.

Trainer’s Guide to Program Indicator Analysis¶

What is this guide?¶

This guide is a support document for DHIS2 Academy trainers for the session “Program Indicator Analysis.” This session follows the standard Academy training approach with

a live demo session where the trainer demonstrate and explain the features, and
a hands-on session with exercises where participants get to practice the same features.

This guide will help the trainer prepare for the live demo session. The “Live Demo step by step” section has a detailed walkthrough of all the steps to demonstrate with explanations and screenshots that should be easy to follow.

There is also a Quick Guide which lists the steps very briefly and this is meant as a lookup guide or “cheatsheet” WHILE doing the demo, to help the trainer remember all the steps and the flow of the demo.

Learning objectives for this session¶

Describe what a program indicator is
Describe how program indicators are calculated
Describe the difference between event and enrollment program indicators
Understand how program indicators can fill tracker data analysis gaps present in other visualization tools
Create visualizations using program indicators derived from tracker data
Understand the limitations behind using program indicators

Time Requirements¶

Live Demo: 3 demos, ~10 mins each
Hands-on Exercises: 3 exercises, ~10mins each
Assignment: 30 mins multiple choice

Background¶

Program Indicators offer a flexible way of interacting with tracker data and allow for a number, of advanced functionality as it relates to aggregating or summarizing individual tracker data. This session will focus on how program indicators can be used in data visualizer, maps and event reports to both display information related to a single tracked entity as well as summarize data for many tracked entities based on the org unit and period you are working with.

Preparations¶

This session will see you creating a number of visualizations. Ensure that you have run analytics in the demo database you are using and that all the data is being populated correctly. If you find that data is not present for the correct period or year, please contact the training content team so we can advise how to move the data correctly.

You should consider running through the entire demo prior to presenting it. After this, you should take the quick guide and supplement it with any additional notes you made while running through the demo. If you identify any changes that may be required or additional explanation that would be helpful within the session, please content the training content team in order to allow us to evaluate how to best integrate this feedback into the material.

Every visualization that you are asked to create has been saved and should be shared for public view. You can open each one up and review how it is has been made if you are unsure about any of the visualizations contents.

Also, the learner's guide and session summary are the main material that will be provided to the learner's with both detailed steps for ungraded exercises as well as the key messages from the session. Review these as well to ensure you are able to discuss these key points during your demonstration.

Best Practices¶

Before starting the demonstration, please keep in mind that the most important thing is that the audience is following, so make sure to ask questions to the audience to verify that they are following. If something is unclear, go back and go through it slowly. If you don’t have time for all the steps, it is better to cut some steps, than to go fast while nobody understands.

In an online setting, you will be breaking regularly to allow them to perform various ungraded exercises in order to keep them engaged.

In an in-person setting, the participants may be doing the demo with you at the same time. In this scenario, it is ideal if there are other trainer's moving around the room to support participant's as it will be difficult for the trainer leading the session to answer many individual questions during the demonstrations.

Quick Guide¶

In data visualizer, create a pivot table using an event program indicator from Malaria case notification program
Visualization Type : Pivot Table
Data
Data Type : Program Indicator
Program : Malaria case notification,investigation and response
Program Indicator : MAL- CS - Cases detected through PCD
Period : Last 6 months
Org Unit : User sub-units
Create a chart using program indicators from different program stages from Malaria case notification program
Visualization Type : Line Chart
Data
Data Type : Program Indicator
Program : Malaria case notification program
Program Indicators :
- MAL-CS- Confirmed malaria cases
- MAL-CS- Indigenous (Local)
Period : This Year
Org Unit : User sub-units
Explain the visualization and where the data is coming from. Note that this type of chart can not be made in event visualizer.
Convert the chart to a pivot table. Note that this type of table can not be made in event reports.
Convert the table to a map. Note that you are now using the thematic layer to display your data, which has different options available compared to the event and TEI layer.

STOP! Have them perform Exercise 1 in the learner's guide.

Create a map using the thematic layer with the following inputs:
Layer Type : Thematic
Data:
Item Type : Program Indicators
Program : Malaris case notification program
Program Indicator : MAL-CS-Female
Leave the aggregation type as default
Period:
Period Type : Relative
Period : Last 6 months
Display Periods : Timeline
Org Units : User sub-units
Filter : None
Style : Bubble Map, Single Color Legend

Highlight the additional options available when using the thematic layer via program indicators

STOP! Have them perform Exercise 2 in the learner's guide.

Create a line list showing the number of relationships by TEI from the Case-based Surveillance Program. Create a line list table with the following inputs:
Input Type : Enrollment
Program Dimesions
Program :Case-based Surveillance
Data
- Attributes : Given name, Family name
- Data Element: Other Sign/Symptoms
- Program Indicator: Contacts
Org Unit : 0001 CH Mahosot
Time Dimension : Date of notification (this is the enrollment date)
Explain the report and the program indicator you have added to this report
Add the program indicator for days between symptoms onset and consultation
Add a condition for days between symptoms onset and consultation >= 0
In data visualizer, create a bar chart showing the average days between onset and consultation across all level 3 OUs within Vientiane Capital
Visualization Type : Bar Chart
Data
Data Type : Program Indicator
Program : Case-based Surveillance Program
Program Indicator : CBS - Days between onset and consultation
Period : This Year
Org Unit : Level 3 (District) OUs within Vientiane Capital

Clean the chart by hiding the empty categories using the options menu.

STOP! Have them perform Exercise 3 in the learner's guide.

Review the recap slide
Have them perform the assignment

Live Demo step by step¶

Create a pivot table in data visualizer using a program indicator from the Malaria case notification,investigation and response program¶

Open the table "MAL - CS - Cases detected through PCD Last 6 months." This is the table that you will create. The data item is a program indicator that is counting the # of malaria cases that meet said criteria. You can explain the layout to the participants before continuing.

Clear your inputs by going to Favorites -> New.

In the first example, you will create a simple pivot table using a single program indicator in data visualizer. It will have the following inputs:

Visualization Type : Pivot Table
Data
Data Type : Program Indicator
Program : Malaria case notification,investigation and response
Program Indicator : MAL- CS - Cases detected through PCD
Period : Last 6 months
Org Unit : User sub-units

The layout can look like this

The table should look like this (the months shown may differ as its relative to the current date)

This is a program indicator that is pulling its information from the data element "Detection setting." This data element consist of an option set. This program indicator is therefore aggregating the events which meet the criteria for PCD.

Create a chart using event indicators from different program stages from the Malaria Case notification program¶

A gap that we can address when compared to other methods of working with event/tracker data is creating a pivot table, chart or map using aggregated data from different program stages. We can do this in data visualizer for any of the available visualizations using either event or enrollment type program indicators and is not something we could achieve in either event reports or event visualizer (though we can make line lists using data from different program stages in the line listing app).

Open the chart "MAL - Confirmed malaria cases and Confirmed malaria cases classified as indigenous." This is the chart that you will create.

This chart is showing data from seperate stages together. The diagnosis is confirmed in Stage 1 of this program, while the classification occurs in Stage 4 of this program.

You can explain this to the participants before continuing.

Clear your inputs by going to Favorites -> New.

In this example, we will create a line chart with the following inputs:

Visualization Type : Line Chart
Data
Data Type : Program Indicators
Program : Malaria case notification program
Program Indicators :
- MAL-CS- Confirmed malaria cases
- MAL-CS- Indigenous (Local)
Period : This Year
Org Unit : User sub-units

In order to create this chart, ensure your layout looks like this:

The chart should look like this

This chart uses event indicators, including combining data from Stage 1 (Diagnostic and Treatment), where it gets the data on whether or not a confirmed Malaria case, and Stage 4(Case outcome), where it gets the information on whether the case is Indigenous (local).

It is not possible to create this type of output using event visualizer (you can not pull data from multiple stages using event visualizer).

You can convert this chart to a pivot table so they can see that you can also create a pivot table using data from multiple stages, an option not possible in event visualizer/reports.

Lastly, you can open this table as a map to show you can now use the thematic layer. The thematic layer opens up a number of additional options when working with your data (we will go over an example where we create a map from scratch using a program indicator in the thematic layer during the next part of this session).

Do this by selecting "Open as Map" from the visualization selection.

When you open this as a map, you will have to select one of the data items used in the chart/table as your primary layer (you can select all but since they are all displaying data at the same OU level, you will in effect only see data from the top layer). Select one of the event indicators (MAL-CS-Confirmed malaria cases) using data from multiple stages to demonstrate that this type of data can be mapped.

STOP! Have them perform Exercise 1 in the learner's guide.¶

Create a map using a program indicator from the Case-Based Surveillance program¶

In the maps session, we had discussed how we can use the event and TEI layer to map raw tracker data (also known as event data items). While we can also use the thematic layer when dealing with tracker data, this is often less useful as the number of numeric data elements in a tracker program may be limited.

Through the use of program indicators however we are able to extend maps functionality with tracker data significantly as we can use the thematic layer to its full potential. This includes creating split view and timeline maps and using the available style options (such as creating choropleth and bubble maps) that are not available when using the event and TEI layer as examples.

Open the map "MAL-CS- Female cases, last 6 months." This is the map that you will create. You can explain the layout to the participants before continuing.

Clear your inputs by going to Favorites -> New.

Create a map using the thematic layer with the following inputs:

Layer Type : Thematic
Data:
Item Type : Program Indicators
Program : Malaris case notification program
Program Indicator : MAL-CS-Female
Leave the aggregation type as default
Period:
Period Type : Relative
Period : Last 6 months
Display Periods : Timeline
Org Units : User sub-units
Filter : None
Style : Bubble Map, Single Color Legend

Data Tab

Period Tab

Org Units Tab

Style Tab

The map should look like this (note that the months displayed may be different as the period is relative to the current date)

You can play back the timeline map. You will see over time the monthly values are increasing or decreasing (the map is showing the total number per month, not the cumulative number; cumulative can be shown however the indicator needs to be configured differently).

STOP! Have them perform Exercise 2 in the learner's guide.¶

In the line listing app, create a line list, enrollment report showing the number of relationships by TEI from the Case-based Surveillance Program¶

Program indicators can be used in event reports, line listing and event visualizer as well as within data visualizer and maps, depending on how they are defined. This is because one program indicator can work on two levels:

Through creating a summary output for a single TEI
Through creating a summary output for all TEIs within a period/org unit

We will demonstrate these principles using two program indicators that use "Average" as the aggregation type.

Contact tracing program
Summarizes the total number of contacts a single TEI has through the relationships that have been created in tracker capture
Summarizes the average number of contacts for all TEIs based on their enrollment date and the specified period and organisation unit
Case based surveillance - days between onset and consultation
Summarizes the total number of days between onset of symptoms and their initial consultation date for single TEI
Summarizes the average number of days between onset of symptoms and initial consultation date for all TEIs based on their enrollment date and the specified period and organisation unit

Open the table "CBS - Contacts by Person." This is the table that you will create. You can explain the layout to the participants before continuing.

Clear your inputs by going to Favorites -> New.

Create a line list table with the following inputs:

Input Type : Enrollment
Program Dimesions
Program : Case-based Surveillance
Program Dimensions
- Org Unit : 0001 CH Mahosot
- Time Dimension : Date of notification (this year)
- Attributes : Given name, Family name
- Data Element: Other Sign/Symptoms
- Program Indicator: Contacts

Note : here is the location of the org unit in case you are unfamiliar with this hierarchy (01 Vientiane Capital -> 0101 Chanthabouli -> 0001 CH Mahosot)

The table should look like this

Emphasize that you are able to select program indicators from the program dimensions tab; however some program indicators may not work as intended or not give you any meaningful output depending on how they have been configured. For example, for a single TEI, any count based indicators within a single, non-repeatable program stage may not be so helpful as the maximum value they can return is 1 for a single TEI.

Sort the table by the "Contacts" column. This is showing the number of contacts each person has had as defined through adding relationships via tracker capture.

(note : a likely follow up question may be if we can list the individuals they have relationships with; this is not possible and requires a custom app or report)

Add the program indicator "CBS - Days between onset and consultation" to your report and update your line list¶

From the program dimesions tab, add the PI "CBS - Days between onset and consultation"

Set the Condition : Days between onset and consultation >= 0

To set the condition select the "Days between onset and consultation" program indicator. From here, you can define the condition.

Update your table.

We now have an additional program indicator which is showing the number of days between each person's onset of symptoms and their initial consultation.

Create a bar chart showing the average days between onset and consultation across all level 3 OUs in VC¶

As discussed previously, these types of program indicators can function on two levels. We have reviewed how we can use various types of program indicators at the individual level, now we can use the same program indicator and create a summary output.

We will use data visualizer to demonstrate this.

Note: Program indicators are available to select within event visualizer but they often do not result in any output. It is best to use data visualizer to create charts when using program indicators.

Open data visualizer.

Open the chart "CBS - Average days between symptoms onset and consultation, this year." This the chart that you will create. You can explain the layout to the participants before continuing.

Clear your inputs by going to Favorites -> New.

In data visualizer, create a chart with the following inputs:

Visualization Type : Bar Chart
Data
Data Type : Program Indicator
Program : Case-based Surveillance Program
Program Indicator : CBS - Days between onset and consultation
Period : This Year
Org Unit : Level 3 (District) OUs within Vientiane Capital

Note : here is the location of the org unit in case you are unfamiliar with this hierarchy

And here is the layout that should be used for the chart

You can remove the empty categories to clean up the chart.

Go to options -> data -> hide empty categories -> all

The chart should look like this after you update it.

When we review this chart, we no longer see values that are representative of one individual person, but using the same indicator we are able to take an average for all individuals within the organisation units and period that we have selected.

Summary on these two indicators¶

From these two program indicator examples, we can see that program indicators can have multiple functions at both the individual and aggregate level. These various functions can be quite useful depending on what information you are looking to review within your system. There are many other advanced possibilities that are available when using these types of indicators. The best source of this information will be the documentation.

STOP! Have them perform Exercise 3 in the learner's guide.¶

Recap¶

Review the recap slide with them at the end of the session before they perform the assignment

Assignment¶

After you have completed all demos and they have finished the exercises, have them complete the graded assignment for this session. If you find you are running out of time, assign the graded assignment to them and ask them to complete it outside of the live scheduled session.