Scalable data collection for all environments

Capture digital data from handwritten forms

Request

With ScanForm, handwriting on paper is transcribed into digital data with a single smartphone photo, saving time and eliminating human errors. Once the photo is uploaded, artificial intelligence (AI) extracts all information to auto-calculate custom summary statistics and visual analytics in seconds.

How it works

From Paper to Digital in Seconds

1Write on paper
Use any form factor, A3, A4, A5 ... it’s up to you!
2Take a picture
Typical $100 phone/tablet is OK!
3Data is digitized
In seconds!
4Use the data
Real-time data analysis and summary reports!

ScanForm Advantages

Without ScanForm, partners can spend 30-40% of their budgets on data extraction and typing alone. In one example country from Sub-Saharan Africa, over 25K USD is spent each month for every 50 facilities, amounting to many millions per year at national scale.

Time + Money Saved with AI

  • Eliminate manual data entry, because handwriting is auto-transcribed

  • Eliminate physical source data verification, because an image of each form is captured and accessible digitally

  • Reduce M&E costs with fully automated DQAs, because missing pages, timeliness, completeness and accuracy are monitored with each image upload

Accurate + Expedient Analytics

  • Self-learning OCR > 98%, calibrated to local handwriting

  • Real-time summaries and data quality reports

  • Automatic imputation corrects logic errors and missing data

Scalability + Simplicity

  • No need for stable electricity, scanners, computers, or tablets. Works offline and uploads when network is available.

  • Pen and paper are easier to use than tablets or computers
  • Broadly deployable in communities

Compliance + Security

  • Fully compliant with GDPR
  • Auto-redaction of personal identifiable information
  • Auto-deletion of images after upload
  • No physical removal of forms
person taking picture of ScanForm

Use Cases

Surveillance
Routine Reporting
Clinical Trials
Refugee and Human Rights
Education

Applications

HIV/AIDS, malaria, COVID-19, antimalarial treatments, spatial repellent and LLIN performance, influenza vaccine delivery, household surveys, county censuses, legal defense forms, crop surveys, school attendance…

…any information collected on paper that needs to be analyzed quickly and correctly is suitable for ScanForm.

Read more about our work

Where We Are

Kenya

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Malawi

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Nigeria

Nigeria flag

Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso flag

Benin

Benin flag

Namibia

Namibia flag

Mexico

Mexico flag

Tanzania

Tanzania flag

Problem: how to collect data at scale, in environments with limited infrastructure?

Paper is used everywhere but inaccuracies accumulate

  • Manual ferrying, transcription and summarization
  • Cascade of inaccuracies and incompleteness from human errors
  • Delays from data collection to database reporting

All-electronic data collection is infeasible in many places

In sub-Saharan Africa, ~600 million people lack access to electricity. This produces disparities in network connectivity and digital literacy.

    Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems play a critical role in making public health data available at digital speed. However, EMRs are not universally implemented, with many facilities still relying on paper-based data collection.

    For facilities without EMRs, ScanForm is a smart and sustainable solution

    As a data system, ScanForm can function independently or as a transition platform for countries scaling up their information technology infrastructure. Once ready, ScanForm data can integrate harmoniously with EMRs to achieve a complete picture of health from electronic and paper-based data.

      At facilities with EMRs, power and network outages force a return to paper

      Unreliable infrastructure causes recurring challenges for overburdened healthcare workers by creating a reporting backlog. Using ScanForm as a backup strengthens national eHealth strategies for a holistic digital health data system.

        Learn more

        ScanForm: Scalable Data Collection

        Feedback from Focus Groups

        “The first advantage is in terms of reports. The person who collected the data has no burden of report writing.The other thing is that mistakes are minimized and the transmission of the data is instant.”

        [ScanForm] is going to ease work on data collection and submission because once we have a session with the client and we have filled the details in the ScanForm register ... we simply scan it using the ScanForm technology and once we capture the images in the register, the technology submits the report. Our task is just to scan the images.”

        “It was not difficult for me to use the technology, because I learned how to use it and I was able to use it without challenges.

        Our Impact

        Patient records processed since 2018 and exponentially growing

        Average OCR certainty

        More accurate stats compared to manual data collection

        Faster data entry compared to tablets

        Partners

        Malawi logo
        Malawi
        Kenya logo
        Kenya
        Nigeria logo
        Nigeria
        Burkina Faso logo
        Burkina Faso
        Benin logo
        Benin
        Namibia logo
        Namibia
        Mexico logo
        Mexico
        Tanzania logo
        Tanzania
        Centers for Disease Control and Prevention logo
        President's Malaria Initiative logo
        United States Agency for International Development logo
        World Health Organization logo
        The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria logo
        President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief logo
        Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation logo
        Kenya Medical Research Institute logo
        Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine logo
        Washington State University logo
        University of Maryland, Baltimore logo
        International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center logo

        Questions? We’ve got answers!

        No more duplicative data reporting.

        Higher accuracy and faster analytics from paper, for more confident decision making: that’s ScanForm.

          Ready to use ScanForm?