Understanding Determinants of Routine Data Use by the Levels of Health System in Low and Middle‐Income Countries: A Scoping Review
The International Journal of Health Planning and Management
Published online on July 29, 2026
Abstract
["The International Journal of Health Planning and Management, EarlyView. ", "\nABSTRACT\nEvidence shows limited use of routine data to support health actions in lower and middle‐income countries (LMICs). To address that, there are several ongoing efforts to strengthen routine health information systems which are largely crippled by the fragmented nature of the health system. This scoping review aims to identify the key enablers of routine health data use and examine gaps in the institutionalization of data use practices across different levels of the health system in LMICs. We scoped up four literature sources, that is, PubMed, IEEE Xplore, the Public Library of Science (PLOS), and Google Scholar for the article published between January 2019 and December 2023. Three reviewers independently screened article titles, abstracts, and full text against inclusion and exclusion criteria, following the Arksey and O'Malley and PRISMA framework to guide the review process. We classified our findings into three health system levels: that is facility, district, and national/sector‐wide. Out of 380 screened articles, 41 were selected for inclusion, where most of the articles (48.8%), were on the health facility level. The study found that factors influencing the use of routine data vary across health system levels, with human resource capacity and friendly data collection tools being more important at the facility level. In contrast, the availability, and capacity to use analytical tools and governance structures were more reported at the district and national levels. Further, capacity building in health information systems, IT infrastructure, and regular supervision were crucial across all health system levels. We argue for focused interventions to be designed to institutionalise routine data use practices for better healthcare outcomes across health system levels.\n"]