How much time do you budget to create a data visualization? The best visualizations, though they appear to be simple and clear, are often the result of dozens of attempts. Demographers spend countless hours crunching data and preparing journal submissions, but not all take full advantage of data visualization, either in their exploratory analysis, or […]
When DHS and other population-based surveys indicate potential problems with a country’s health care systems, such questions are raised: “Are certain services available in health facilities?” “What is the quality of those services?” “Are there factors at the service delivery level that could be contributing to the problems?” The Service Provision Assessment (or SPA) survey […]
Have you ever wanted to start immediately working on a DHS dataset, but didn’t have a research topic? Or didn’t want to take the time to register for access? Well, The DHS Program now has the cure for all your data analysis woes! The DHS Program has created model datasets so users can become familiar […]
For over 30 years, data from DHS surveys have been widely used to assess use of family planning, and monitor family planning programs around the world. DHS data are the gold standard for quality, but nuanced information related to fertility intentions and family planning use is often challenging to collect in a large-scale quantitative survey. […]
International Women’s Day, March 8, never fails to give me pause: while it provides a time and space to celebrate women’s achievements and evaluate progress toward attaining gender equality, it also makes me wonder when we – all of humanity – will no longer need to set aside a special day to focus attention on […]
Fact sheets with survey results for the first 15 of the States and Union Territories from the 2015-16 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) were recently released to much fanfare and a veritable feeding frenzy among the media. The keen interest in the survey results materialized even without a formal dissemination event. The thirst for […]
Laurie Liskin with the 2014 Kenya DHS team. From left to right: M.G. Obudho, Michael Musyoka, Sara Head, Laurie Liskin, John K. Bore, Andrew Imbwaga, A.A. Awes (back), Christine Mbuli, Rebecca Kiptui, James Munguti (back) After 12 years with The DHS Program, 58 trips to 17 countries, and almost 40 years in international development, I’ve […]
Take a look back at the highlights of The DHS Program from 2015… The DHS Program welcomed several new staff members: via GIPHY We released two helpful tutorial videos on sampling and weighting DHS data: via GIPHY 33 South-to-South consultants from 23 countries played an integral role in capacity strengthening for all aspects of survey planning and […]
Days like today are why I love my job. “Thematic data use workshops are the most important part of the survey,” Fatou CAMARA, director of the Senegal Continuous Survey at l’Agence Nationale de la Statistique et la Démographie (ANSD), tells me over dinner. “They’re also my favorite,” she adds. I couldn’t agree more. It’s always […]
In 2012 when the Social Media for Global Health and Development working group started, many people were searching for some guidance on how to do social media for global health. The group started small with just a few interested organizations and has since grown to over 500 around the world. The need for social media […]
Anthropometry measurement (height and weight) is a core component of DHS surveys that is used to generate indicators on nutritional status. The Biomarker Questionnaire now includes questions on clothing and hairstyle interference on measurements for both women and children for improved interpretation.