So You Think You Want a Dashboard?

In public health, data collection is a key and regular activity, but as we’ve previously discussed there is a big difference between data simply existing and data being put into critical use to improve health outcomes. Data visualization has an ability to bridge this divide, and dashboards are a popular example of data viz bringing actionable information to people’s fingertips.

If you’re about to (or aspire to) embark on the journey of designing a new dashboard with data, a bit of advance planning can set you up for success in how your hard work is used for decision-making.

JSI’s Center for Health Information Monitoring and Evaluation (CHIME) created a guide, Designing a New Data Dashboard, that breaks down the process of designing a dashboard. It offers a series of recommendations and considerations for each phase and is suited to be adapted in a variety of contexts. Intended to be used as a tool to assist teams as they collect user requirements, technical needs, and applications, it’s also a resource to guide the conversation between the dashboard designer and technical staff, serving as a grounding point for the brainstorming period.