Scoping literature review of facilitators and barriers to routine immunization data quality and use in decision making in Sub-Saharan Africa

Availability of high-quality data alone, is not sufficient to ensure the effective use of the data in decision making. Therefore, this study aims to identify the facilitators and barriers to generating quality data and usage for decision making in routine immunization program management in Sub-Saharan Africa. Scoping literature review was conducted on empirical and non-empirical literature on immunization data in sub-Saharan Africa from 2010 to 2020. The review adopted Arksey and O'Malley's theoretical framework and Donabedian's model in the abstraction and analysis of data, and in the synthesis of the findings. The structural factors that facilitate routine immunization data quality and use include, the availability of trained data managers (n=7) and relevant data management tools (n=15). The procedural facilitators are existence of routine data quality assessment processes such as supportive supervision and data review meetings (n=29), and the use of decision support systems like data monitoring charts and dashboards (n=18). Conversely, the barriers to routine immunization data quality and use were inadequate human resources for data management (n = 4), poor staff attitudes to data management (n = 4), insufficient capacity of data managers to use decision support tools (n=7), and poor supervision and tracking of immunization coverage data (n=21). This study found that structural and procedural factors greatly influenced quality of immunization data. The conceptualization, design, and implementation of interventions and strategies for improving the quality and use of immunization data should leverage the facilitators and mitigate the barriers.