Routine Data and Minimum Datasets for Palliative Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa: Their Role, Barriers and Facilitators

‘Routine data’ describes datasets designed and developed primarily to support direct care provision, or for administrative and managerial purposes, rather than specifically for research. Routine data across all health system levels provide opportunities to inform and understand current service provision and evaluate any subsequent changes to it. Increasing rates of cancer in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) mean it is crucial to understand how existing and future data can help guide provision of palliative cancer care. This chapter outlines the role of, and barriers and facilitators to, routine data collection in SSA in informing the delivery of palliative cancer care, using a case study from Uganda and discussing the utility of a key indicator minimum dataset. The chapter concludes with an overview of the likely future influence of digital health technologies and their potential for facilitating the capture, sharing and use of routine data to inform delivery of palliative cancer care across care settings in SSA countries.