Hospital Information Systems: An Observational Study in a Tertiary Hospital

Abstract

Background: Hospital Information Systems (HIS) are the necessity for medical organizations to prove themselves committed to better healthcare solutions with improved services. The long waiting time in a few government hospitals due to inadequate performance of the HIS prompted me to volunteer as an observer in a large government hospital to study their HIS. Aims and Objectives: 1. To observe and understand the functionalities of a hospital management system in ESIC (Employees’ State Insurance Corporation) Model Hospital, Rajajinagar, Bangalore. 2. To identify any technical challenges in the working of the system. 3.To assist staff in making use of the Hospital information system in an efficient manner. Methodology and Observations: The system follows a client-server architecture with the data center located in the ESIC headquarters in New Delhi. It runs on a WLAN intranet with two SD-WAN connections, one acting as a backup in case the primary SD-WAN fails. HIS of ESIC Model Hospital, Rajajinagar, aptly named Dhanwantri after the Hindu God of Medicine, consists of software that manages all aspects of the hospital right from registration of patients, the OPD, inpatient admissions and bed allotment, Operation theatre module, stores, laboratory and blood bank modules. The challenges faced by the hospital in effective implementation of the HIS are both human and technical. Recommendations to overcome both technical and human challenges are addressed. Conclusion: ESIC Model Hospital, Bangalore has implemented the Hospital Information System successfully and is making sincere and concerted efforts to strengthen its application. Though facing certain technical and human challenges, in the long run, it should be one of the few government hospitals to become a paperless hospital.