OpenFn

Enabling interoperability through data integration, workflow automation, and standards to help governments work more efficiently and scale services.

Past and Current Partners

WFP's Digital Health Innovation Accelerator program, UNICEF, USAID, Digital Square, FCDOs CovidAction Fund, DIAL, Open Source Center, Mulago Foundation, Startup Chile

Active Countries
43 countries
Thematic area(s)
Health, Crisis, Inclusive Growth, Other
Technology
Open Source, SaaS, Digital Public Good
Organisation Name
Open Function Group
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The Problem

OpenFn aims to solve the problem of over-priced, half-connected or completely siloed digital “solutions” which have LMIC governments holding the bag and fail to provide optimal health care service to their citizens. The OpenFn Integration Toolkit, a Digital Public Good used worldwide, provides secure, scalable, enterprise-grade infrastructure for building and deploying solutions that exchange data, enforce standards (e.g., FHIR, OpenHIE), and automate key processes. For example, a single process that UNICEF and the Thailand Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) automate via OpenFn is the data exchange of patient medical history between the national health information system (HIS) and the social services case management system (Primero). OpenFn users are IT implementers and government ministries who serve the people in need of reliable healthcare systems.

The Solution

OpenFn is a suite of data integration and automation tools that provides governments, NGOs, and social enterprises with digital infrastructure to integrate disparate information systems, automate critical processes, facilitate interoperability, and scale life-saving interventions.

How it works?

  • Step 1: OFG provides the open-source OpenFn Integration Toolkit and a proprietary integration platform as a SaaS to government and NGO implementers.
  • Step 2: Implementers identify requirements for data integration, process automation, and interoperability in their institutions, and develop data sharing agreements between interested parties.
  • Step 3: Implementers draft specifications for the desired solutions, documenting the data integration or processes to be automated, as well as the specific data elements to be exchanged between systems.
  • Step 4: Implementers prototype and pilot solutions on OpenFn.org or the open-source toolkit
  • Step 5: Implementers test their integration and automation solutions, often involving system end users in UAT sessions, to validate the solution configuration and gather feedback.
  • Step 6: Implementers prepare their solutions for go-live, scaling up by purchasing a SaaS plan on OpenFn.org or by deploying their solutions to local or open-source infrastructure.
  • Step 7: Implementers launch their solutions, and leverage OpenFn features for ongoing integration management, auditing, and deployment change requests as end systems and requirements evolve over time.
Digital X Solution OpenFn

Bridging the digital divide

OpenFn allows IT implementers and civil servants to better serve traditionally disenfranchised groups. As a certified DPG and emerging piece of critical digital public infrastructure (DPI), the OpenFn Integration Toolkit was designed to drive efficiency and effectiveness for the world's most critical health and humanitarian interventions. The OpenFn Toolkit includes open source processes and a knowledge base aimed at developing technology agnostic integration skills, any organization can benefit from the integration experience without actually using the software.

Impact and highlights

  • OpenFn has been implemented by 42 organizations and manages data in 43 countries.
  • OpenFn cumulatively powers over 10 million transactions per year and handles an estimated 50 million records.

Plans for expansion

With support from the WFP and Digital Square, OpenFn is currently expanding its DPG Toolkit and this year plans to release Lightning a fully open-source workflow automation platform. Lightning is designed for governments or NGOs who need a flexible solution which enables them to integrate and automate workflows across any system. It comes with fully-fledged auditing and user management capabilities, and a user-friendly visual interface for building integrations. Last year, OpenFn was implemented by the Cambodia Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans, and Youth Rehabilitation, the Thailand Ministry of Public Health, and UNICEF in pilot interoperability implementations in Cambodia, Thailand, and Ethiopia. Via a partnership with UNICEF's Primero Deployment team (Primero is an open-source case management system, also a DPG), they expect to implement new Primero interoperability solutions in up to 8 new countries before the end of 2023. In Nigeria, SwissTPH independently implemented the OpenFn DPG, extending the open source toolkit to integrate with OpenHIM and automate data exchange for nationwide disease surveillance as part of their ALMANCH initiative.

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