Role in Identity Management

In healthcare, identity management plays a critical role in ensuring continuity of care, both as patients return for follow-up visits or seek care at another facility.10,11,12 Biometric systems, which “contain both biometric and non-biometric components”1, can help identify the patient seeking care as the same patient represented by an existing medical record within or across digital systems.10,11,12

When a patient arrives at a health facility’s registration, biometric recognition can be used to search, compare, and confirm a patient’s identity against existing medical records to the patient, thereby matching the patient to existing medical records. Biometric recognition processes are broken down into biometric identification and biometric verification.1

*For the purposes of this module, the term “biometric identification” will be used in place of biometric recognition.

In Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, and Haiti, biometrics are collected at the facility level and connect with local and/or national databases for biometric identification.13,14,15 In Ethiopia, biometrics are collected in community settings as part of the electronic community health information system (eCHIS). Additionally, discussions have begun for incorporating biometrics to a national identification (ID).16

Implementation of biometric identification can be classified based on how many modalities are used: unimodal (one) or multimodal (multiple) biometric system.1,17

Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Haiti, and Ethiopia’s eCHIS only utilize fingerprint biometrics, and therefore are considered to have unimodal biometric systems. 13,14,15,16 Simprints, a non-profit, notes having a multimodal biometric system could be beneficial in a scenario where it is not possible to collect data for one biometric characteristic. In this case, then the other could be used. For example, if a multimodal biometric system utilized fingerprint and facial biometrics, and data was not possible to be collected for fingerprint biometrics, then facial biometrics can be collected.14 Additionally, Ethiopia is looking to have a national ID that incorporates multimodal biometrics. Currently Ethiopia is looking at fingerprint biometrics and iris biometrics. The plan is that the national ID can be used to access different services, including healthcare services.16

Since biometric systems include biometrics and non-biometric features, existing processes collecting demographic information can be used if a unimodal biometric system does not work or if a patient does not consent to utilizing biometrics. For example, Côte d’Ivoire, identified that they would utilize a system previously put into place to collect demographic information, if fingerprints for a patient were not able to be captured. In addition, Simprints shared the example that while a patient may consent to sharing information, treatment, etc., they may not consent to biometrics collection.14