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Hospital Management System Project in Software Development

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Hospital Management System (HMS) is one of the most common software development projects. In this article, we will make the Hospital Management System software development project, from scratch, for final-year students. We will cover all the steps you must do while developing this project.

Hospital-Management-System

Table of Content

Step 1- Team Formation Phase: Creating a Dynamic Team

Step 2- topic selection, step 3- project synopsys for hospital management system.

  • Step 4- Requirement Gathering (Creating SRS for Hospital Management System)

Software Requirement Specification (SRS) Document | Hospital Management System

4.1 srs (hospital management system) | introduction:, 4.2 srs (hospital management system) | overall description:.

  • 4.2.3 Class Diagram of Library Management System:

4.3 SRS (Hospital Management System) | Designing Hospital Management System:

4.3.1 use case diagram for hospital management system:, 4.3.2 er model of hospital management system:, 4.3.3 data flow diagram of hospital management system, 4.3.4 sequence diagram of hospital management system, 4.3.5 activity diagram of hospital management system, 4.4 functional requirements | srs (hospital management system), 4.5 non functional requirements | srs (hospital management system), 5. coding or implementation of hospital mangement system.

  • 5.1 Implementing Hospital Management System | Environment Creation:
  • 5.2 Implementing Hospital Mangement System | Database Creation:
  • 5.3 Implementing Hospital Mangement System | Frontend and Backend Development:
  • 5.3.1 Step 1: Creation of Login & Signup page Module:

5.3.2 Step 2: Creating Patient Module:

5.3.3 step 3: creating doctors module:, 5.3.4 step 4: creating admin module, step 6- testing hospital management system, step 7- creating project presentation on hospital management system:, check out some other cs relate projects down below:.

Project Development is a multiphase process in which every process is equally important. Here in this post, we are also going to develop our Hospital Management System Project in multiple phases, such as:

  • Team Formation

Topic Selection

  • Creating Project Synopsys
  • Requirement Gathering
  • Coding or Implementation
  • Project Presentation

Let us look into the steps one by one.

Team formation for a final-year project is a crucial aspect that can significantly impact the success and efficiency of the project. In the final year, students often have diverse academic backgrounds, skills, and interests. Therefore, forming a well-balanced team becomes essential to leverage the strengths of each member and address any potential weaknesses.

In Our project as we will be exploring about web application for Hospital Management System so we will be required below skill sets.

  • Front end Developer
  • Back end Developer
  • Devops Developer

Hospital--management-system-project-team

Hospital Management System Team

While making our project of Hospital Management System this will be our  second  step in which we will find an interesting problem statement and try to generate an idea to solve that problem using our knowledge.

Choose a topic related to your field of study that is of great interest to you. It is advised that you pick a topic that has a powerful motive. For instance, a project that helps humankind will truly be unmatched. Another factor to keep in mind is to choose topics that aren’t very common. 

Hospital-Management-System-new

  • Topic Planning : In this phase team will gather and try to search a topic or problem statement by brainstorming , reverse thinking or any other strategy and select a problem which is challenging in nature and solvable by using their combined knowledge of tech.
  • Defining & Set Objective :  After planning the problem statement we will define clear problem statement and its objectives.

Result  :  In the end of this phase we will be having a problem statement for our project.

In our example we are selecting the topic ”  Hospital Management System  ” .

After the selection of the topic we are going to start our project work in the following steps:

A project synopsis serves as a concise overview or summary of a proposed project, offering a brief but comprehensive insight into its objectives, scope, methodology, and expected outcomes. It typically acts as a preliminary document, providing supervisors, or evaluators with a quick understanding of the project before they delve into more detailed documentation.

Hospital-Management-System-23

Project Synopsys for Hospital Management System

The project synopsis usually includes key elements such as the  project title ,  problem statement  or  context ,  objectives ,  scope  and  limitations ,  methodology  or  approach ,  expected outcomes , and the  significance  of the project in the broader context. It serves as a roadmap, guiding readers through the fundamental aspects of the project and helping them grasp its purpose and potential impact.

Below are some of the points we have to cover in the synopsis report : Project Title Introduction of Project Problem Statement Proposed Solution Objective of the Project Scope of the Project Methodologies used ER Model Use case Diagram Dataflow Diagram Features of the project For Users For Admin Impact of the project Limitations of the project Future scope of the project

Let’s create a Synopsys Report for Hospital Management System:

3.1 Introduction | Project Synopsys for Hospital Management System

Hospitals play a vital role in our lives by offering the greatest medical care to those with a variety of illnesses, whether brought on by stress, emotional trauma, a change in the weather, or other causes. Hospital staff members who are essential to the proper operation of the facility must maintain detailed records of their daily activities and interactions with patients, physicians, nurses, ward boys, and other staff members. However, it is exceedingly time-consuming and prone to error to keep track of all the actions and their records on paper. Not to mention that it takes a lot of time and is highly inefficient given the ongoing rise in both the population and hospital visits. Keeping track of all these documents is extremely unpredictable, ineffective, and prone to mistakes.

3.1.1  Problem Statement for Hospital Management System :

The broken and manual processes used by hospital management today create inefficiencies and make it difficult to provide high-quality patient care. Unorganised communication lines, outdated technology, and paper-based record-keeping all lead to mistakes, omissions, and delays in obtaining vital patient data. Furthermore, the absence of integrated solutions makes it more difficult to analyse data for resource optimisation and well-informed decision-making. A comprehensive hospital management system (HMS) that centralises and automates critical functions is desperately needed in this situation to address these issues. In addition to streamlining administrative duties and facilitating smooth patient management, the system should enhance provider communication and offer strong analytics tools for ongoing performance evaluation and enhancement.

3.1.2  Proposed Solution for Hospital Management System :

Our suggested Hospital Management System (HMS) provides a simplified approach to improve patient care and hospital operations. Our intuitive software assists in effective workflow management by integrating billing, analytics, appointment scheduling, and patient management. Decision-making accuracy and speed are increased by automated procedures, electronic health record (EHR) administration, and real-time data access. The technology protects data security and guarantees adherence to healthcare rules. Our Health Care Management System (HMS) enables healthcare providers to achieve better patient outcomes, optimise resource utilisation, and deliver high-quality care by centralising functions and offering powerful features.

3.1.3  Objective of the Project :

The objective of the Hospital Management System (HMS) project is to design and implement an efficient and user-friendly system that automates the various tasks associated with managing a hospital.
  • To computerise every detail related to hospital and patient information.
  • Arranging patient appointments with physicians in a way that is convenient for both parties.
  • Appropriately scheduling emergency room visits and specialised medical appointments to ensure that hospital resources are completely and effectively utilised.
  • The medical store’s stock level should decrease if it provides patients with medications, and vice versa.
  • It ought to be capable of managing patient test findings from the hospital’s pathology lab.
  • Every time a transaction is completed, the inventory ought to be updated automatically.
  • Patients’ information should be current, and their records should be preserved in the system for future reference.

3.1.4  Scope of the Project :

The scope of the project “hospital management system” typically includes various aspects related to the efficient functioning of a hospital. This may involve managing patient records, appointments, staff schedules, inventory, billing, and other administrative tasks. Additionally, it might encompass features like electronic health records (EHR), laboratory and pharmacy management, and integration with medical devices. The scope can vary depending on the specific requirements of the hospital and the functionalities desired in the management system.

The scope of the project of Hospital Management System typically covers the following aspects:

Functional Scope:

  • Register patients
  • Maintain patient records including personal information, medical history, and treatment details
  • Schedule appointments and manage patient queues
  • Register staff members including doctors, nurses, administrative staff, etc.
  • Manage staff schedules and assignments
  • Track staff attendance and performance
  • Maintain inventory of medical supplies, equipment, and medications
  • Track usage and order supplies when needed
  • Manage stock levels to avoid shortages or excess inventory
  • Generate bills for services rendered to patients
  • Manage insurance claims and payments
  • Track financial transactions and generate reports
  • Schedule and manage patient appointments with doctors and other healthcare providers
  • Send reminders to patients about upcoming appointments
  • Create and maintain electronic health records (EHR) for patients
  • Ensure the security and privacy of patient information
  • Allow authorized personnel to access and update medical records as needed

Non-Functional Scope:

  • Ensure the system is user-friendly and easy to navigate for both staff and patients
  • Provide clear instructions and guidance for using different features of the system
  • Ensure the system is reliable and available whenever needed, with minimal downtime
  • Implement backup and recovery mechanisms to prevent data loss in case of system failures
  • Ensure fast response times for accessing patient records and performing other tasks
  • Optimize system performance to handle a large number of concurrent users and transactions
  • Implement robust authentication and authorization mechanisms to prevent unauthorized access to patient records and sensitive information
  • Encrypt data transmission to protect patient privacy
  • Regularly update and patch the system to address security vulnerabilities
  • Design the system to scale easily as the hospital grows and the number of patients and staff increases
  • Ensure the system can handle additional workload without significant performance degradation
  • Ensure the system can integrate with other healthcare systems and external services such as laboratories, pharmacies, and insurance providers
  • Implement standard protocols and interfaces to facilitate data exchange and communication between different systems.

3.2 Methodologies | Project Synopsys for Hospital Management System

In HMS we are using various technologies and new methodologies to solve our problems. Below are the detailed description about the technology used and methods we are applying in our project.

Technology Used :

Here we are developing a Hospital Management System (HMS) using   HTML ,   Bootstrap  for the frontend, and   MySQL ,  PHP , and   JavaScript  for the backend involves a structured methodology.

ER Model of Hospital Management System :

An Entity-Relationship Diagram (ERD) for a Hospital Management System (HMS) models the entities and their relationships within the system. Below is a simplified ERD for a Hospital Management System. In Synopsys we make a rough ER Diagram to give a idea about the working of the project.

Let’s Draw an ER Model of Hospital Management System:

ER-diagram-(2)

  • Patient: Stores information about patients such as patient ID, name, contact details, and address.
  • Doctor: Contains details about doctors including doctor ID, name, specialty, contact information, and department.
  • Appointment: Represents appointments made by patients with doctors. It includes attributes like appointment ID, appointment date and time, patient ID, doctor ID, and any additional notes.
  • Staff: Stores information about hospital staff members such as staff ID, name, position, and contact details.
  • Department: Contains details about different departments in the hospital. Each department has a department ID and name.
  • Medical Record: Stores medical records for patients, including patient ID, doctor ID, diagnosis, treatment, and other relevant medical information.

Relationships:

  • Patient-Appointment (Many-to-Many): A patient can have multiple appointments, and each appointment can involve multiple patients.
  • Doctor-Appointment (One-to-Many): A doctor can have multiple appointments, but each appointment is associated with only one doctor.
  • Doctor-Department (Many-to-One): Many doctors can work in one department, but each doctor belongs to only one department.
  • Staff-Department (Many-to-One): Many staff members can work in one department, but each staff member belongs to only one department.
  • Medical Record-Patient (One-to-One): Each patient has one medical record, and each medical record is associated with only one patient.

Data Flow Diagram of Hospital Management System:

Data Flow Diagram (DFD)  serves as a visual representation of the flow of information within the system. Here’s a simplified Data Flow Diagram (DFD) for a hospital management system:

  • Patient Information: Flow of personal and medical information from patients to the hospital system.
  • Medical Records Data: Transfer of patient health records between the medical records system and healthcare providers.
  • Appointment Requests: Submission of appointment requests by patients or staff to schedule appointments.
  • Billing Information: Flow of billing data from the billing system to patients for payment processing.
  • Prescriptions/Orders: Transmission of prescription orders from doctors to pharmacies or medical supply departments.
  • Staff Schedules: Exchange of staff schedules and assignments between the staff management system and departments.

The DFD provides a concise yet comprehensive overview of the HMS’s data flow and interactions, aiding in the analysis, design, and communication of the system’s functional aspects.

DFD-0-new-

Use Case Diagram of Hospital Management System :

Use case diagram  referred as a Behaviour model or diagram. It simply describes and displays the relation or interaction between the users or customers and providers of application service or the system. It describes different actions that a system performs in collaboration to achieve something with one or more users of the system. Use case diagram is used a lot nowadays to manage the system.

Here is a Use Case Diagram for Hospital Management System:

Use-case-diagram-new-hospital

3.3 Features | Project Synopsys for Hospital Management System

Many features are usually included in a hospital management system to enhance patient care and simplify processes. A project summary for a hospital management system may contain the following typical elements:

  • Enrollment and access Records of electronic health (EHR)
  • Scheduling appointments tracking of patient histories
  • Roles and profiles of employees Modify the schedule
  • Assessment of performance
  • Monitoring certifications and training
  • prescription drugs and medical equipment monitoring and equipment administration
  • Reordering and stock alerts
  • Invoicing and billing Management of insurance Analytics and financial reporting
  • Tracking test orders and outcomes
  • Tracking samples Quality assurance
  • Management of prescriptions tracking of inventories
  • Labelling and dispensing
  • electronic prescriptions Order entry and processing
  • Staff and physician scheduling
  • Automated appointment reminders
  • Metrics of performance results for patients
  • Efficiency in operations
  • Control of access HIPAA adherence
  • Data security and privacy precautions

3.4 Impact | Project Synopsys for Hospital Management System

A Hospital Management System (HMS) project overview must include a description of the system’s possible effects. The following are some ideas for inclusions:

  • Better Patient Care: By optimising workflows, cutting down on errors, and promoting improved provider communication, the HMS seeks to improve the standard of patient care. As a result, patients may receive better care more quickly and with greater efficacy.
  • Enhanced Efficiency: The HMS can greatly increase operational efficiency by digitising a number of hospital operations processes, including appointment scheduling, patient records administration, and inventory tracking. This entails cutting back on paperwork, minimising administrative effort, and making the most use of available resources.
  • Cost Savings: The hospital may experience cost savings as a result of implementing an effective HMS. Hospitals can save operating expenses and better distribute resources by automating procedures, decreasing manual errors, and improving inventory management.
  • Enhanced Accessibility: By permitting online appointment booking, telemedicine consultations, and remote access to medical records, a well-designed HMS can enhance accessibility to healthcare services. Patients with mobility challenges or those who live in rural places may find this to be extremely helpful.
  • Data-Driven Decision Making: The HMS gathers and examines enormous volumes of data, offering insightful information on a range of hospital activities, patient characteristics, and treatment results. Initiatives for quality improvement, resource allocation, and strategic decision-making can all benefit from this data.
  • Regulatory Compliance: It is imperative for hospitals to guarantee adherence to healthcare legislation and standards. By automating documentation, monitoring regulatory standards, and putting security measures in place to safeguard patient data, the HMS can aid in streamlining compliance activities.
  • Better Communication: Providing coordinated care requires effective communication between healthcare providers. By offering a centralised platform for exchanging patient data, test findings, and treatment plans amongst various departments and care teams, the HMS promotes communication.
  • Patient Satisfaction: By offering easy access to healthcare services, cutting down on wait times, minimising errors, and enhancing contact with healthcare providers, the HMS ultimately seeks to improve the whole patient experience. Increased patient satisfaction can result in better word-of-mouth recommendations, greater loyalty, and eventually a better reputation for the hospital.

3.5 Limitations | Project Synopsys for Hospital Management System

A Hospital Management System (HMS) project overview must address any potential constraints or difficulties that might occur. The following are some typical restrictions that might be present:

  • Initial Investment: A substantial upfront investment in technical infrastructure, software development, employee training, and system integration is necessary for the implementation of a full HMS. Hospitals with inadequate funding may find it difficult to cover this upfront expense.
  • Integration Challenges: It can be difficult and time-consuming to integrate the HMS with the hospital’s current systems, including the billing, laboratory, and electronic health record (EHR) systems. During the integration phase, problems with interoperability, compatibility, and data migration could surface.
  • User Adoption: The effective deployment and uptake of the HMS may be impeded by staff members’ resistance to change. Employees may be reluctant to switch to a new digital platform if they are used to manual procedures or outdated technology. Enough training and continued assistance are necessary to guarantee a seamless user adoption process.
  • Data Security Issues: Hospital management systems are susceptible to cyberattacks and data breaches because they hold sensitive patient data. To preserve patient privacy and adhere to legal obligations, it is essential to have strong data security measures in place, including as encryption, access limits, and frequent security assessments.
  • Technical Problems: The HMS may experience technical problems including software flaws, system outages, or performance problems, just like any other software system. It is imperative that technical problems are resolved quickly in order to minimise hospital operations disturbance and preserve patient care quality.
  • Scalability: The HMS must to be scalable in order to support changes in organisational structure, an increase in patient load, and new services as the hospital expands or changes. Careful planning and continuous investment in system upgrades and additions are necessary to ensure scalability.
  • Regulatory Compliance: Hospitals have to abide by a number of laws and guidelines pertaining to the security, privacy, and interoperability of healthcare data. It can be difficult and possibly time-consuming to stay on top of evolving regulations and make sure that standards like HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) are followed.

By acknowledging these limitations upfront, stakeholders can develop strategies to mitigate risks, address challenges, and ensure the successful implementation and utilization of the Hospital Management System.

3.6 Future Scope | Project Synopsys for Hospital Management System

The future scope and possibility for expansion and development should be outlined in the project description for a hospital management system (HMS). The following ideas could be included in the section on future scope:

  • Enhanced Features: Constantly enhancing and expanding the HMS’s functionality to better serve patients’ and healthcare professionals’ changing demands. Features like telemedicine capabilities, sophisticated analytics for predictive modelling, and interaction with cutting-edge technology like AI and machine learning are a few examples of what this may contain.
  • Mobile Accessibility: Increasing the HMS’s usability by including mobile applications that let medical professionals consult patient data, make appointments, and get in touch with colleagues whenever and wherever they are. Patients can also manage their appointments, view their medical information, and get alerts and reminders through mobile apps.
  • Interoperability : Increasing interoperability with external stakeholders, including pharmacies, labs, insurance companies, and government health agencies, as well as other healthcare systems. The efficiency of healthcare delivery may be increased overall, redundant jobs can be decreased, and care coordination can be better with seamless data interchange and integration.
  • Remote Monitoring and IoT Integration: Real-time monitoring of patient vital signs, medication adherence, and other health data is made possible by integrating Internet of Things (IoT) sensors and remote monitoring devices into the HMS. This can help with proactive interventions, early health issue detection, and the provision of individualised care.
  • Population Health Management: Identifying trends, patterns, and risk factors within patient populations by utilising data analytics and population health management tools in the HMS. This can help guide public health programmes, illness management plans, and preventative care tactics that aim to enhance the health of entire populations.
  • Patient Education and Engagement: Improving patient education within the HMS by use of interactive tools, educational materials, and personalised health information. Giving patients the tools they need to actively manage their health can enhance treatment compliance, produce better results, and boost patient happiness.

Step 4- Requirement Gathering (Creating SRS for Hospital Management System )

This is the next phase after the submission of the synopsis report. We can do this process before the Synopsys report creation as well , It is all depends upon the project and their requirements. Here after getting an overview about the project now we can easily do the requirement gathering for our project.

Requirement analysis, also known as requirements engineering or elicitation, is a critical phase in the software development process. It involves   gathering ,   documenting , and   analysing  the needs and constraints of a project to define its scope and guide subsequent development.

hspital-managements

Requirement Gathering and Designing Phase of Hospital Management System

We develop a detailed  Software Requirement Specification for Hospital Management System,  in this process which will have all the details about the project from Technical to Non Technical Requirements.

Below are some of the key points in a Software Requirement Specification Document:

Introduction Purpose Scope References Overall Description Product Perspective Product Function User Classes and characteristics Operating Environment Assumptions and Dependencies Functional Requirements Software Requirements Hardware Requirements Database Requirements Non-Functional Requirement Usability Requirements Security Requirements Availability Requirements Scalability Requirements Performance Requirements Design Control Flow Diagram ER Model of HMS Use Case Diagram System Features

Note : To know more about  What is a SRS Document  or  How to write a good SRS for your Project  follow these articles.

Let’s Start building a Software Requirement Specification for Hospital Management System Document for our project:

4.1.1  Purpose:

Efficient management of the clinical, financial, and administrative aspects of a healthcare facility is the aim of a hospital management system (HMS). HMS seeks to improve patient care, simplify procedures, and maximise resource use. It functions as a centralised platform for the management of appointments, patient data, inventory, billing, and provider-to-provider communication. Through the automation of repetitive operations and provision of decision support tools, HMS enhances workflow effectiveness, minimises errors, and guarantees regulatory compliance. It also encourages patient participation, backs data-driven decision-making, and makes it easier for healthcare delivery to continuously improve quality. All things considered, HMS is essential to improving the general efficacy, efficiency, and calibre of hospital healthcare services.

4.1.2  Scope of the Project:

A Hospital Management System (HMS) project’s scope includes, but is not limited to, developing software modules for electronic health records (EHR), patient management, appointment scheduling, billing and invoicing, inventory management, and reporting. It also involves integrating these modules into an organised structure that satisfies the particular demands and specifications of the medical facility. In addition, user training, data migration from current systems, customisation to fit certain workflows, and continuous technical support and maintenance are all included in the project scope. In addition, the scope might include putting in place security measures to protect patient data, making sure that laws and regulations like HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) are followed, and making sure that the system is scalable to allow for future expansion and technological improvements.

4.1.3  References :

  • Software Requirements (Microsoft) Second Edition By Karl E. Wiegers
  • Fundamentals of Database System By Elmasri
  • Software Requirements and Specifications: A Lexicon of Practice, Principles and Prejudices (ACM Press) by Michael Jackson
  • Fundamentals of Software Engineering By Rajib Mall
  • Software Engineering: A Practitioner’s Approach Fifth Edition By Roger S. Pressman

4.2.1  Product Perspective :

The future scope of the Hospital Management System includes continuous enhancements for improved interoperability with emerging healthcare technologies, integration of artificial intelligence for predictive analytics and personalized care, and expansion of telemedicine capabilities to enhance remote patient monitoring and virtual consultations.

4.2.2  Product Functions :

The Hospital Management System’s product functions are explained in further detail below:

Admin Functions:

  • Admins can oversee and manage the registration process for new patients.
  • They have the authority to create and manage unique patient identifiers.
  • Admins can have control over the overall appointment scheduling system.
  • They manage the appointment calendar for doctors and other staff members.
  • Admins have access to and manage the storage of electronic health records (EHRs) for patients.
  • Admins handle inventory tracking for medical supplies, medications, and equipment.
  • They facilitate efficient stock management and automatic reordering.
  • Admins generate bills and invoices for services rendered.
  • They oversee the integration with insurance systems for claims processing and manage billing and payment transactions.
  • Admins manage employee profiles, roles, and schedules.
  • They handle shift assignments, leave management, and performance evaluation for staff.

Doctor Functions:

  • Doctors can view and manage their appointment schedules.
  • Doctors have access to patient EHRs, including medical history, diagnoses, medications, lab results, and treatment plans.
  • Doctors can place test orders, track samples, and access and interpret laboratory test results.
  • Doctors can view and manage prescription orders, as well as access patient medication histories.

User Functions:

  • Users (patients) can register and provide essential demographic information.
  • Users can schedule appointments with healthcare providers.
  • Users have access to their own electronic health records.
  • Users may interact with the system for billing inquiries and payments.
  • Users can view their prescription orders and medication histories.

4.2.3  Class Diagram of Library Management System :

Class Diagram for Hospital Management System simply describes structure of Hospital Management System class, attributes, methods or operations, relationship among objects.

class-diagram-new-hospital

For a Hospital Management System (HMS), the class diagram and its characteristics would typically include:

  • Classes : Representing entities such as Patient, Doctor, Nurse, Administrator, Appointment, MedicalRecord, Department, and Billing.
  • Attributes : Each class would have attributes representing its properties. For example, the Patient class might have attributes like patientID, name, gender, dateOfBirth, and contactDetails.
  • Operations (Methods) : These would define the behaviors associated with each class. For instance, the Appointment class might have methods like scheduleAppointment(), cancelAppointment(), and rescheduleAppointment().
  • Associations : Relationships between classes would be depicted to show how they are connected. For instance, an association between Patient and Doctor classes would show that a patient can be associated with one or more doctors.
  • Multiplicity : Multiplicity would specify how many instances of one class are associated with instances of another class. For example, a Doctor can have multiple patients, indicating a one-to-many relationship.
  • Inheritance (Generalization) : If there are common attributes or methods shared between classes, inheritance can be used to depict this relationship. For example, Doctor and Nurse classes might inherit from a common superclass called HealthcareProfessional.
  • Composition and Aggregation : These relationships would show how one class contains or is composed of another class. For example, a Hospital class may have a composition relationship with the Department class, indicating that a hospital consists of multiple departments.
  • Dependency : This would show when one class relies on another class, usually through method parameters or return types. For example, the Billing class may have a dependency on the Patient class to retrieve patient information for billing purposes.

A Use Case Diagram for a Hospital Management System (HMS) depicts the interactions between actors (users or external systems) and the system to achieve specific goals. Here’s a simplified version of a Use Case Diagram for an HMS:

Use-case-diagram-new-hospital

ER Diagram  is known as Entity-Relationship Diagram, it is used to analyze  the structure of the Database. It shows relationships between entities and their attributes. An ER Model provides a means of communication. 

ER-diagram-(2)

  • Attributes: patientID (Primary Key), name, gender, dateOfBirth, contactDetails
  • Attributes: doctorID (Primary Key), name, specialization, contactDetails
  • Attributes: nurseID (Primary Key), name, department, contactDetails
  • Attributes: adminID (Primary Key), name, department, contactDetails
  • Attributes: deptID (Primary Key), name, headDoctor, numOfBeds
  • Attributes: appointmentID (Primary Key), patientID (Foreign Key), doctorID (Foreign Key), appointmentDate, appointmentTime, status
  • Attributes: recordID (Primary Key), patientID (Foreign Key), doctorID (Foreign Key), diagnosis, medications, treatment
  • One patient can have multiple appointments.
  • One doctor can have multiple appointments.
  • One patient can have multiple medical records.
  • One doctor can have multiple medical records.
  • One doctor can be associated with only one department, but one department can have multiple doctors.
  • One nurse can be associated with only one department, but one department can have multiple nurses.
  • One administrator can be associated with only one department, but one department can have multiple administrators.

A Data Flow Diagram (DFD) for a Hospital Management System (HMS) illustrates the flow of data within the system and between external entities. Here’s a simplified DFD for an HMS:

DFD-0-new-

In this DFD:

  • External Entities : These represent entities outside the system that interact with it, such as patients, doctors, and administrators.
  • Processes : Processes represent functions or operations performed within the Hospital Management System, such as Patient Records, Appointment Scheduler, Patient Billing, Doctor Records, and Medical Records.
  • Data Flows : Arrows represent the flow of data between external entities, processes, and the database. For example, patient information flows from the Patient Records process to the Database, and medical records flow from the Medical Records process to the Database.
  • Data Stores : These represent repositories where data is stored, such as the Hospital Management Database. Patient information, appointment details, doctor records, and medical records are stored in the database.

This DFD provides a high-level overview of how data flows within the Hospital Management System, showing the interactions between external entities, processes, and the database.

Creating a sequence diagram for a Hospital Management System involves depicting the interactions between various components or actors within the system. Here’s a simplified version:

Sequence-Diagram-of-Hospital-Management-System

Sequence Diagram of Hospital Management System

  • Patient arrives at the hospital.
  • Receptionist greets the patient.
  • Receptionist collects patient information (name, contact details, reason for visit, insurance details, etc.).
  • Receptionist verifies patient’s insurance coverage.
  • Receptionist assigns a unique identifier (ID) to the patient.
  • Nurse or medical assistant escorts the patient to the examination room.
  • Nurse takes vital signs and records patient history.
  • Nurse updates patient’s medical record in the system.
  • Doctor reviews patient’s medical history and current condition.
  • Doctor performs physical examination and orders further tests if necessary.
  • Doctor discusses diagnosis and treatment plan with the patient.
  • Nurse administers medications or treatments as prescribed by the doctor.
  • Nurse schedules any necessary procedures (e.g., X-rays, scans, surgeries).
  • Doctor determines when the patient is ready for discharge.
  • Nurse provides discharge instructions and medications.
  • Receptionist handles billing and insurance claims.
  • Patient leaves the hospital.

This sequence diagram illustrates the flow of interactions between various components involved in the patient admission process, including receptionists, nurses, doctors, and patients. Each step represents a specific action or task performed as part of the admission process within the Hospital Management System.

This activity diagram outlines the main activities and interactions within the Hospital Management System, including booking appointments, patient check-in, accessing medical records, billing, inventory management, staff management, and report generation. Each activity represents a specific task or function performed by users or the system.

Activity-Diagram-of-Hospital-Management-System

Activity Diagram of Hospital Management System

  • Book Appointment
  • View Medical Records
  • Manage Inventory
  • Manage Staff
  • Generate Reports
  • User selects “Book Appointment.”
  • System displays available doctors and time slots.
  • User selects a doctor and preferred time.
  • System confirms the appointment booking.
  • Receptionist greets the patient and verifies their appointment.
  • Receptionist checks the patient in and assigns a queue number.
  • User selects “View Medical Records.”
  • System prompts user to enter patient ID or name.
  • System retrieves and displays the patient’s medical history.
  • User selects “Pay Bills.”
  • System displays a list of outstanding bills for the user.
  • User selects the bill(s) to pay and enters payment details.
  • System processes the payment and updates the billing records.
  • Authorized staff member selects “Manage Inventory.”
  • System displays options to add, update, or remove items from inventory.
  • Staff member performs the desired inventory management tasks.
  • System updates the inventory database accordingly.
  • Authorized administrator selects “Manage Staff.”
  • System displays options to add, update, or remove staff members.
  • Administrator performs the desired staff management tasks.
  • System updates the staff database accordingly.
  • Authorized user selects “Generate Reports.”
  • System provides options to generate various reports such as patient statistics, financial summaries, etc.
  • User selects the type of report to generate.
  • System generates the report and displays it to the user.

Functional requirements for a Hospital Management System (HMS) typically include a wide range of features and capabilities to ensure efficient operations and effective patient care. Here are some common functional requirements for an HMS:

  • Registration: Ability to register new patients, including capturing personal and medical information.
  • Appointment Scheduling: Allow patients to schedule appointments with doctors or departments.
  • Admission/Discharge: Manage the admission and discharge process for patients.
  • User Authentication: Secure login for staff members with different access levels (admin, doctors, nurses, etc.).
  • Staff Roster: Manage staff schedules, including doctors, nurses, and administrative personnel.
  • Electronic Health Records (EHR): Store and manage patient medical history, diagnoses, treatments, and test results.
  • Medical Imaging: Integration with systems for storing and viewing medical images such as X-rays, MRIs, and CT scans.
  • Billing: Generate bills for services rendered, including consultation fees, procedures, medications, and room charges.
  • Insurance Claims: Manage insurance information and submit claims to insurance providers.
  • Medicine Inventory: Track medication stock levels and manage inventory.
  • Prescription Management: Record prescriptions, dispense medications, and manage refill requests.
  • Test Orders: Accept requests for laboratory tests from doctors.
  • Test Results: Record and provide access to test results for medical staff.

4.4.1  Software Requirements :

This software package is developed using html , bootstrap for front end . Php and MY SQL Server as the back end to store the database for backend we are using Xampp server.

  • Operating System : Windows 7, 8, 9, 10 .
  • Language : Html , Css , Javascript , Php , sql
  • Database : MS SQL Server (back end)

4.4.2  Hardware Requirements :

  • Processor : Intel core i3 or above for a stable experience and fast retrieval of data.
  • Hard Disk : 40GB and above
  • RAM : 256 MB or more, recommended 2 GB for fast reading and writing capabilities which will result in better performance time.

4.5.1  Usability Requirements :

  • Our user interface should be interactive simple and easy to understand . The system should prompt for the user and administrator to login to the application for proper input criteria.
  • Hospital Management System shall handle expected and non – expected errors in ways that prevent loss in information and long downtime period.

4.5.2  Security Requirements :

  • System should use secured Database.
  • Normal users can just read information but they cannot edit or modify anything except their personal and some other information.
  • System will have different types of users and every user has access constraints.
  • Proper user authentication should be provided.
  • No one should be able to hack users password .
  • There should be separate accounts for admin and members such that no member can access the database and only admin has the rights to update the database.

4.5.3  Performance Requirements :

  • The system shall accommodate high number of booking and users without any fault.
  • Responses to view information shall take no longer than 5 seconds to appear on the screen.

4.5.4  Error Requirements :

HMS product shall handle expected and non-expected errors in ways that prevent loss in information and long downtime period.

At this stage, the fundamental development of the product starts. For this, developers use a specific programming code as per the design. Hence, it is important for the coders to follow the protocols set by the association. Conventional programming tools like compilers, interpreters, debuggers, etc. are also put into use at this stage.

In Our project as we will be using php and mysql so we will install all required software’s:

5.1 Implementing Hospital Management System | Environment Creation :

Required Softwares:

  • Xampp software  ( for php and mysql )
  • VS Code  ( you can use any other suitable editor as well )
  • Install Bootstrap  or download bootstrap extension on vscode.

After we downloaded the above required software now we will start creating our project . In the following article We will discuss about different different modules compiled with same category.

We will discuss it stepwise :

5.2 Implementing Hospital Mangement System | Database Creation :

Go to your favourite browser and write  localhost/dashboard >> phpmyadmin

Now you can create your own database by using  New  button.

Database   Used in this project:

Below is the SQL code to create those tables in the database, You can modify the code to create your own database for the project.

After creating the database we can now start building the frontend of our project.

5.3 Implementing Hospital Mangement System | Frontend and Backend Development :

This is how our landing page looks like:

Untitled-compressed

5.3.1 Step 1:  Creation of Login & Signup page Module:

signin

Signup page

homepage-compressed

Functionalities of this page:

  • You Can show some important details on the landing page.
  • Existing Users will be able to login through user login page.
  • Admins can also login using admin login form.
  • Users will be able to signup using above signup button.
  • These will be our main functionalities of login page.

Below is the Code for creating above page:

In this module we will have following features.

  • View all doctors
  • View any specific doctor’s details
  • Scheduleds Sessions
  • View al my bookings
  • Setting for patient (Edit account settings, View account setting, Delete account )

View All doctors page:

all-doctors-(pm)

View all my bookings:

my-bookings-(pm)

View doctor’s details:

view-doctor-details-(pm)

Settings page:

settings-(pm)

Here is the code for Patient module

Here are some features in the doctors module:

  • View all appointments and also able to cancel the appointments
  • View all sessions
  • View all the patients
  • Settings for doctors profile (Edit account settings, View account setting, Delete account )

Doctor’s dashboard (Homepage):

doctors-homepage-compressed

Appointments page:

appointments-(DM)

Doctor’s sessions page:

my-sessions-(DM)

Doctor’s my patients page:

my-patients-(DM)

Here is the code for doctors Module:

Here are some features of admin module:

  • Can view all the data e.g. Doctor’s data , patient’s data, sessions data, appointments data etc.
  • Can edit, remove any of the doctor or patient or sessions and appointments.

Admin homepage:

admin-homepage-(AM)

View -Edit – Remove Doctor’s page:

view-edit-remove-dctors-page-(AM)

View – remove Schedules:

view---remove-sessions-(docgor)

View – cancel appointments:

view---cancle-appointments-(AM)

Here is the code for Admin module:

These are the basic modules we require to make our HMS Project , you can add some more exiting features using your own new idea as well.

Coding phase is the most important and time consuming phase after this phase we will be having a source code for our project and it will be through for testing phase.

Testing is a crucial phase in the development of a Hospital management system (HMS) to ensure that it meets its intended requirements, functions correctly, and is free of bugs. Below are some key steps and considerations for the testing phase of a hospital management system:

  • Test individual modules or components of the system in isolation to ensure they function as intended.
  • Identify and fix any bugs or issues found at the module level.
  • Verify that different modules and components of the HMS work together seamlessly.
  • Test data flow and interactions between various parts of the system.
  • Ensure that the user interface is user-friendly, intuitive, and visually appealing.
  • Check for consistency in design elements and responsiveness across different devices.
  • Assess the system’s performance under normal and peak load conditions.
  • Check response times, scalability, and overall system stability.
  • Identify and rectify any security vulnerabilities in the system.
  • Ensure that user data is handled securely, and unauthorized access is prevented.
  • Evaluate the HMS from an end-user perspective to ensure ease of use.
  • Gather feedback on user interfaces, navigation, and overall user experience.
  • Test the HMS on various browsers, operating systems, and devices to ensure cross-platform compatibility.
  • Conduct tests to ensure that new changes or fixes do not negatively impact existing functionalities.
  • Re-run previously executed test cases to verify the overall system stability.
  • Conduct tests in the production environment to ensure a smooth transition from the testing phase to live operation.

In this phase of software development, Team will have to present their work in front of authorities and they will judge your work and give suggestions on the improvement areas.

The ideal length of the ppt should be min 10 slides and maximum 15 slides , you will not have too much time to explain your project so prepare your presentation carefully using important key points.

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  • 11 Modules of Hospital Management System and their Benefits

hospital management system

Ever wondered what it is like to manage an entire hospital?  

It definitely sounds difficult.  

Well, if you’ve landed on this article, you know that efficiently running an entire hospital isn’t a walk in the park. Although it is essential, it gets overwhelming at times.  

Time is of the utmost importance when it comes to healthcare. Imagine the severity if there is even a minor delay or fault while sharing the results and diagnosis.  To simplify operations and efficiently manage patient records, leading hospitals use a hospital management system.  Employing hospital management software helps you reap the maximum benefits from your work.  

Before discussing in detail how you can leverage an HMS to the fullest, let us understand what an HMS is and why it is needed. 

What is a Hospital Management System?

A study showed that healthcare providers spend 35% of their time on documenting patient data. While paperwork is unavoidable in a hospital, you can automate the process and reduce the burden on the staff and doctors. Not just this, hundreds of other processes run parallel in a hospital. An HMS is a one-stop solution to manage all hospital processes and data transfer. You can use it to digitize and simplify activities like: 

  • Patient record management 
  • Tracking and managing appointments 
  • Maintaining staff records 
  • Billing and insurance claims 

Overall, an HMS helps you improve patient experience and the quality of service provided in the hospital.  At the same time it is also used to minimize operating expenses and improve the revenue cycle.  

In a nutshell, Hospital Management System (HMS) creates a frictionless approach to managing the entire hospital and solving operational complexities.  

However, HMS can be a complex system. For ease of understanding and implementation, it is divided into different modules. These modules are built depending on the needs of a department or a particular process. Let’s look at the 11 HMS modules that are essential for any hospital to improve end-to-end productivity. 

11 Essential Hospital Management System Modules

Below we have discussed the 11 hospital management system modules in the same order that a hospital would need them, according to a patient’s journey. 

hospital management system modules

1. Appointment Management   

Managing appointments manually is not only tedious but also increases the chances of human errors. Even patients are inclined to choose a hospital with an option to book appointments online. In a recent study, 68% of patient s said they would prefer to schedule, modify, or cancel appointments online.  

This hospital management system module enables you to add a scheduling option to your hospital’s website so that patients can easily schedule an appointment.  

patient appointment booking function of HMS

Once your patient has booked an appointment, the HMS software for hospitals will match the patient’s illness to the doctor’s area of expertise. It will then assign them to the next available specialist or the one they prefer. It also updates the available slots in real-time to avoid any confusion at the hospital.    The next step in appointment booking is to collect medical documents. An HMS with a patient portal is used to collect documents and share the patient history with the doctors well in advance. If the patient requires assistance at his/her house, the system will check the doctors’ availability for the remote visit and allocate accordingly. In this way, you can create a smooth and error-free process by digitizing the appointment booking process.

patient portal in hospital management software

2. Patient Management   

After the patient onboarding is completed, the patient is moved to an IPD or OPD. The patient management module of HMS caters to the needs of the inpatient and outpatient departments. It captures and stores the medical history, treatment required, details of their previous visits, upcoming appointments, reports, insurance details, and more.   

Patient management software also generates unique admissions numbers for each patient to easily manage admissions, discharges, and transfers. It also builds a comprehensive discharge summary to ensure smooth discharge. At the same time, it records and generates related documents, e.g., consent forms for electronic signature. 

When you start collecting and storing details on hospital software systems, by default you also eliminate the need to get these details on every visit. HMS enables doctors and staff to focus more on treatment than administrative work.  

Now, if you wish to automate other activities like patient communication, consider integrating your HMS with marketing automation software such as LeadSquared . It will enable you to automate communication with patients and doctors. You can send appointments and lab test reminders, or follow-ups, and build meaningful long-lasting relationships.  

patient management software for hospital management system

3. Facility Management    

To provide a smooth experience for your patients, it is essential for your staff to have easy access to necessary hospital records. The facility management module of a healthcare management system helps you to maintain records of bed availability, occupancy status of rooms with specialized care, and more.  

Healthcare management systems collect all such information and make it readily available to your receptionist. 

If you have multiple facilities, then an HMS connects them to provide an overall picture. For example, doctors can access patient data from any hospital using an online hospital management system. Patients can visit any hospital according to their convenience, as all the records are available online. 

4. Staff Management    

The staff management module provides a concrete solution for the HR department. It contains records of your staff, job description, service domain, and other vital details.  

It helps you to know your staff without going through a heavy bundle of files. Additionally, it enables you to plan the hiring process based on the requirements of the hospital.   

5. Supply Management    

A hospital cannot afford to be short of medical supplies. Not having the medicine at the right time or a minor delay in refill can lead to severe results. The supply management component of the HMS tracks the availability of medical stocks. It helps you calibrate the minimum quantity of supplies required without any hassle. It records the purchase date, quantity consumed, and supplier details. This way, you can calculate or predict the next purchase and reorder before the stock falls short.  It also provides the details of the medicine available so that doctors can prescribe the ones in stock.   

6. Financial Management   

The financial management component of an HMS deals with the financial affairs of your hospital. It calculates, stores, and presents the billing information to the patients.   

Additionally, it also records the expenses incurred by the hospital, revenue data, and other financial details of the hospital.   

This consolidation saves you the trouble of analyzing a colossal pile of record books.

7. Insurance Management   

An HMS’ insurance management component records and stores patients’ insurance details. On requirement, it presents the policy number, insurance company, and other associated information.   

The hospital management software makes it easy to fetch these details, making insurance validation easier. 

8. Laboratory Management    

The laboratory management feature of hospital management software shows the details of various lab tests patients take. It furnishes reports when needed and maintains all records collectively.  The doctors can easily access it. It also notifies the doctor and the patients when the results are ready.

9. Report Management    

Report Management module, records and stores all the reports generated by the hospital.   

In the case of financial reports, it analyzes performance metrics to check the business profitability. It also provides a comparison between performance reports for different years. An authorized person can access these hospital management system reports whenever required. 

Furthermore, you can use healthcare dashboards to present these reports in an easy-to-read format. 

10. Vaccination Management  

A vaccination model of hospital management software keeps track of all the completed or upcoming vaccinations. It updates you about upcoming vaccinations and books a slot with the doctor. It also sends timely reminders to parents to ensure they don’t miss the slot. 

11. Support Management

Patient satisfaction is of utmost importance for any hospital. This segment records data like inquiries, complaints, requests, and feedback from patients. It also ensures that you handle these requests and problems appropriately and at the soonest. You can automate the feedback collection process to reduce the staff’s workload, and everyone could fill out the feedback form. 

support management module of HMS

If you are still thinking of whether or not to implement an HSM. To answer this let’s discuss the benefits you will observe after implementing an HMS. 

Benefits of a Hospital Management System

1. enhanced communication between the patient and the hospital.

59% of millennials are willing to switch doctors for better online access. An HMS will improve communication between patients and hospitals by allowing patients to access their medical records, book appointments, receive reminders, and communicate online with their doctors and nurses. You will have improved patient engagement, a reduction in waiting times, and increased patient satisfaction.   

2. Secured hospital data

Hospital management software must help you keep hospital data safe and secure. You can limit the access to authorized personnel only. Make sure to look for HIPAA Compliant software for PHI security.   

3. Improved access to patient data

You can have easy entry to all patient-related data on a system using an HMS. You can also access data such as patient history, doctors engaged, test results, billing information, and many more with just a few clicks.   

4. Reduced turnaround time

Streamline your hospital workflows by automating routine tasks like appointment or inventory management. This reduces the time and effort required to perform these tasks and the turnaround time. It also allows hospital staff to focus on more critical patient care areas.   

5. Cost-effectiveness

Implementing hospital management software can lead to significant cost savings for hospitals. It helps by reducing administrative overheads, improving resource allocation, and minimizing the wastage of medical supplies. An HMS can also optimize revenue streams by ensuring timely billing and reducing claim denials.    

6. Intelligent analytics with automatically generated reports  

An HMS can provide valuable insights regarding operations by generating real-time reports on various metrics, such as patient flow, occupancy rates, and revenue generation. This enables you to make data-driven decisions, improve processes, and optimize resources.    

7. Centralized administrative control

An HMS helps build a centralized platform for managing operations, allowing hospitals to streamline their administrative processes. It ensures consistency across departments. This can improve efficiency, reduce errors, and better overall patient care.   

8. Reduced medical errors

An HMS can help reduce medical errors by providing doctors and nurses with up-to-date patient information. It minimizes the risk of misdiagnosis, incorrect treatment, or adverse drug interactions.   

9. Reduced readmissions and rehospitalization rates  

An HMS can also reduce readmissions and rehospitalization rates by ensuring timely follow-ups. This improves patient outcomes and reduces the risk of complications.   

To get to know how effective a Hospital Management System can be for hospitals, let us have a look at the example of how Manipal Hospital benefited from it. 

How LeadSquared Helped Manipal Hospitals to Improve Reporting and Lead Management  

Manipal Hospitals is one of India’s largest healthcare providers, with over 27 multispecialty hospitals. They have multiple teams working together to enable a smooth patient experience.  

With a high patient volume and each team working on a different platform, keeping track of each patient’s journey and managing appointments became increasingly hard for Manipal Hospitals. They needed to centralize leads across India while securely managing patient information. LeadSquared provided an all-in-one solution integrated with their existing HIS. 

Key Results: 

  • Zero Lead Leakage 
  • 360° View Across Teams 
  • Better Patient Management 
LeadSquared’s APIs and connectors help us collect detailed patient data and integrate it with our core HIS system. The dashboards and reports enable us to work with this data and derive great insights from it. Both these features help streamline processes, save time, and in turn boost team productivity. Kiran Ramakrishna, Assistant Manager, Manipal Hospitals

[Also read: Manipal Hospital Improves Reporting and Lead Management to know the complete story.]

Conclusion  

Hospital Management System (HMS) is essential to the delivery of modern healthcare. It can boost patient outcomes, lower medical errors, and improve the overall quality of care. It enables hospitals with a centralized platform to manage their operations, automate mundane processes, and enhance communication.   

Moreover, Healthcare CRM , when integrated with the Hospital Management System, helps you combine professional medical care with quality patient service.    

To experience the benefits of an integrated HMS and Healthcare CRM system, get in touch with our team today!  

Also read:   

  • What is Healthcare CRM?    
  • EHR integration with healthcare CRM software    
  • Patient satisfaction survey questions   
  • Healthcare CRM – A 61-question checklist to help you make the right decision  

There are generally two types of HMS, cloud-based and on-premises. A cloud-based or web-based hospital management software is hosted on the provider’s server. In contrast, on-premises hospital management software is hosted on the hospital’s private server and data centers.  A cloud-based hospital management system is more popular as it is cost-effective, and the provider can handle it remotely.

While implementing an HMS, you may face the following challenges:  1. Cybersecurity  2. Lack of technical team support  3. Complex interface  4. Higher initial implementation cost  To overcome these challenges, you need the right provider. They will ensure data security and support the implementation and staff training.  

An off-the-shelf CRM is popular as it is cost-effective and quick to implement. It is a great option for small to medium sized organizations looking for basic and essential features. Whereas a custom-built HMS provides more control over the usage and features.  

Avatar photo

Awantika is a healthcare marketer with LeadSquared. She has been a part of the content and product marketing game for almost 3 years. You can connect with her on LinkedIn or write to her at [email protected].

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paper cover thumbnail

Methodology for the Development and Deployment of a Hospital Management Information System using Free Open Source Software

Profile image of Tariq badsha

The paper examines the methodology for developing a Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) on Free Open Source Software (FOSS) and identifies the areas of improvement in the design and methodology. In addition to the methodology the paper presents the broad contours of the software solution and the extent to which existing FOSS components have been used. The paper also provides the rationale and benefits of adopting an in-house development model using FOSS. While the target implementation is an HMIS, the general requirements are no different than a Management Information System (MIS) for a small to medium size enterprise, and thus these enterprises can migrate to FOSS based applications quite economically by adopting the model presented in this paper. With the recommendations made in this paper a more robust application can be delivered, which will also be more conducive for adoption by FOSS developer community.

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Gustave Karara

Background and Purpose: The health sector in many developing countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, suffers since a long time from poor health information collection and analysis systems. This study evaluates the results of 3 projects financed by the Migration for Development in Africa-Great Lakes (MIDA GL) program in 3 Rwandan hospitals: Kigali University Teaching Hospital (CHUK), Neuro-psychiatric hospital Caraes-Ndera (NPH-CN) and Gihundwe district hospital (GDH). These projects aimed to empower hospital staff in collecting and analyzing hospital information by using OpenClinic, an open source hospital information management system. Methods: The first analysis at CHUK used the results of a CAP (competence, ability, practice) survey addressed to healthcare staff in using OpenClinic, in 2010 and 2012. The second method analyzed results of NPH-CN and GDH in the OpenClinic software utilization between 1/1/2011 and 31/12/2012. Results: Results showed that routine OpenClinic util...

Ijaems Journal

— Health institution requires quality data and information management to function effectively and efficiently. It is an understatement to say that many organizations, institutions or government agencies have become critically dependent on the use of database system for their successes especially in the hospital. This work aims at developing an improved hospital information management system using a function-based approach. An efficient HIMS that can be used to manage patient information and its administration is presented in this work. This is with the goal of eradicating the problem of improper data keeping, inaccurate reports, wastage of time in storing, processing and retrieving information faced by the existing hospital information system in order to improve the overall efficiency of the health institution. The system was developed with Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP), and My Structured Query Language (MySQL). The new system was tested using data collected from Renewal Clinic, Ibadan, Nigeria was used as case study were the data for the research was collected and the system was tested. The system provides a vital platform of information storage and retrieval in hospitals.

International Journal of Information Studies

Navin Upadhyay

Mohammed Najm Abdullah Al Salam , shaimaa khamees

Healthcare is so interesting for our society. Generally Hospital Management Information System(HMIS) is a computer-based system that has the ability to coordinate all information for enable healthcare providers to do their works effectively and efficiently. According to using these systems across the globe, this requires a strong need to understand such systems and its capabilities. This work conducts investigation study about hospital management information system encompasses historic view of the system and its evolution stage, the most important functionalities services , stakeholder of such systems ,components of HIS, three layer graphic based model(3LGM), architecture design style of HIS and standard communication of HIS. This work will give a comprehensive picture to the reader about available HMIS.

Tanzania Journal of Engineering and Technology

The paper presents results of a study seeking to identify constraining and motivating factors associated with the adoption and use of Free Open Source Software to computerise health Information Systems in a developing country. The study approach is interpretive research to case study with a triangulation of several qualitative data collection methods such as interviews, group discussions and document analysis. The findings indicate that using open source software has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are low entry cost to adopting software, possibilities of software localization, avoiding being hostage of proprietary software and foster knowledge acquisition among software developers. The disadvantages are the need for constant internet access, high switching costs, and lack of human resources especially IT professionals to maintain the software since users get more rights in using and maintaining the system. The study concludes that because of the dynamics in health info...

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The increasing popularity of open source (OS) software has made it a viable alternative to proprietary technologies presently used in numerous healthcare facilities. Despite easy availability however, open source applications have not been adopted enthusiastically by the health industry. The key issues are reliability and stability. This paper enumerates the different OS medical information managers currently available and discusses the various techniques they used for their implementations. A standard set of technical criteria was created. and the results of ratings were used as basis for comparison.

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Experiences of implementing hospital management information system (HMIS) at a tertiary care hospital, India

Vilakshan - XIMB Journal of Management

ISSN : 0973-1954

Article publication date: 19 November 2021

Issue publication date: 2 February 2023

Mumbai needs to be transformed into a world-class city as stated in the 2005–2025 development plan of Municipal Corporation. For this initiative, hospital management information system (HMIS) has to be implemented across 400+ health facilities in the city.

Design/methodology/approach

A case study methodology was adopted to study HMIS implementation. Wave 1 of Phase 1 implementation of HMIS is carried out as a pilot project at Film City’s Hospital, Mumbai, which “go-live” on 21st June 2018. The work for hardware and software implementation was awarded to HardSystems and Solutions Limited and SoftSolutions India Private Limited, respectively, through e-tender.

Provision of inadequate quantity of hardware, slowness of network or system, non-satisfactory training after observation confirmation and sign-off process, lack of data entry operators, mismatch in numbering systems in blood bank and many other challenges concerned with the specific departments had become a major impediment in the efforts to maximize number of patients registered into HMIS.

Practical implications

Even after providing many clinical and managerial benefits, being the first cloud-based centrally located HMIS in any of the hospitals in the city, it imposes a major challenge for the management in terms of resistance of employees toward technology and need for the adoption of theoretical models for implementing change for the overall organizational development.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no other teaching case study is conducted to study the HMIS implementation in large-scale public health-care services. This is a dummy case study for teaching exercises. The identity of the stakeholders, organizations and events has been masked to maintain confidentiality.

  • Change management
  • Organizational development
  • Health-care services management
  • Hospital management information systems
  • Pilot project

Arora, L. and Ikbal, F. (2023), "Experiences of implementing hospital management information system (HMIS) at a tertiary care hospital, India", Vilakshan - XIMB Journal of Management , Vol. 20 No. 1, pp. 59-81. https://doi.org/10.1108/XJM-09-2020-0111

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2021, Lakshya Arora and Feroz Ikbal.

Published in Vilakshan – XIMB Journal of Management . Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence maybe seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

It was a dewy evening of Mumbai in July 2018 and a biscuit falls into the hot coffee which Medical Superintendent of Film City’s Hospital, Mumbai was dunking into his huge vintage cup.

Deputy Medical Superintendent and hospital management information system (HMIS) Nodal Officer at Film City’s Hospital bought a letter sent by one of the Heads of a Clinical Department to his office. It was mentioned in the letter that in most domains of the HMIS, the providers have not completed the modules and required integration which they have requested them to make as per the departments’ clinical and documentation requirements. The letter added that the training team was helping them only with cursory skills which they could learn by themselves once the modules would be effectively designed and given. Hence, the representatives of SoftSolutions India Private Limited were suggested to be called in a meeting along with Heads of all the Departments and other users of the system in the presence of Medical Superintendent and Director to avoid financial losses to the health-care system.

The Deputy Medical Superintendent and the HMIS Nodal Officer discussed with the Medical Superintendent that it was only one among many letters received by HOD of many departments of the hospital where HMIS was implemented as a pilot project by the Director in the past few months.

Informatics involves information acquisition, organization, validation, storage, retrieval, integration, analysis, communication and presentation, using IT as a key resource ( Lifshitz et al. , 2007 ; Sinard, 2006 ). HMIS is defined as the “computer system designed to ease the management of all the hospital’s medical and administrative information and to improve the quality of healthcare” ( Degoulet and Fieschi, 1997 ). An EHR system comprises “the longitudinal collection of electronic health information for and about persons, where health information is defined as information pertaining to the health of an individual or health care provided to an individual. Critical building blocks of an EHR system are the electronic health records (EHR) maintained by provider…and by individuals” ( National Institutes of Health, 2003 ).

At present, most of the Indian hospitals are adopting HMIS as a way of automation and digitalization of their health-care records.

Film City’s Hospital, Mumbai

Bombay, the very first possession of Britishers in India, came to King Charles II of England in 1661, when he married the Portuguese queen, as part of the royal dowry. Through Corporation Resolution No. 512 which was dated August 12, 1996 under Maharashtra Act, XXV, 1996, the name “Bombay” has been changed as “Mumbai.”

Greater Mumbai is presently a metropolitan aggregation of around 18 million residents (world’s six largest and largest in India). The port city accounts for most of foreign trade in India as well as government revenues, being one of the major hubs for education, research, development and technology in India ( MCGM, 2019 ).

The Film City’s Hospital situated in the heart of Mumbai is a 1,000-bedded tertiary care facility with around 30 clinical departments where every year more than 55,400 patients are admitted and more than 280,000 patients (new and old) are treated in out-patient department. More than 21,000 operations (major and minor) are performed and 4,200 deliveries are done every year.

In addition to the routine medical services, it also offers various super-specialty services in nephrology, neurosurgery, endocrinology, gastroenterology, cardiology and cardiac vascular and thoracic surgery. This hospital has well-equipped intensive care units for medical, surgical, cardiac and neonate patients. The hospital has its own blood bank and component therapy unit, which provides services round the clock. A whole body CT scanner, cardiac catheterization system and spect camera, etc. are also installed at the hospital. It also has independent hyperbaric oxygen therapy chambers.

The hospital levies fees from the patients at subsidies rate and efforts are made to provide the best and excellent patient care ( MCGM Health Department, 2019 ).

Why hospital management information system…?

India’s 12th 5-year plan highlights the need to improve HMIS throughout the nation and a possible investment in health IT in the public health system (Twelfth Five year Plan Draft 2012, 2017). Multiple findings have reported the advantages of HMIS implementation ( Hillestad R et al. , 2005 ; Wang et al. , 2003 ; Frisse and Holmes, 2007 ; Shekelle et al. , 2006 ).

HMIS is considered to be the most promising instrument to improve the overall efficiency, safety and efficacy of the health service (Basit et al. , 2006). Wide and effective use of HMIS improves the quality of health care ( Frere, 1987 ); minimize adverse events; reduce the cost of medical care ( Lun, 1995 ); increase administrative productivity improvements ( Kuruvilla et al. , 2004 ); reduce documentation as well as enhance access to affordable treatment (Basit et al. , 2006; Yasnoff et al. , 2000 ).

Municipal Corporation aspires Mumbai to be transformed into a millennium and world-class city as stated in the development plan 2005–2025. For this to happen, Mumbai requires to be distinguished about the quality of life aspect by improving the quality of citizen welfare services. As part of this initiative, the HMIS has to be implemented across 400+ health facilities across the city.

There is the availability of digital access original data through HMIS which can be used as a strong tool in the decision support system for the Film City’s Hospital management. The HMIS data can be used for analysis as well as for forecasting purposes. The electronic medical records (EMRs) as well as picture archiving and communication system (PACS) generated can be of great use for the clinical purposes for better diagnosis and treatment. The HMIS data can also be used for drug calculations and better scientific inventory management practices at the hospital.

Hospital management information system implementation at Film City’s Hospital

Literature have shown that implementation and improvement in HMIS to guide policy and management decisions has found essential space in countries such as Peru, Tanzania, Solomon Islands, Caribbean, Lesotho, Honduras, India (Uttar Pradesh) and Kryragya Republic (World Bank Reports , 1993 , 1999, 2000, 2001; Commission on Health Research for Development, 1990 ).

The work of software implementation and post-implementation of HMIS in the film city covering 4 major hospitals, 1 dental hospital, 18 peripheral hospitals, 5 specialty hospitals, 28 maternity homes, 161 dispensaries and 183 health posts was awarded to SoftSolutions India Private Limited.

As per the directives, Wave 1 of Phase 1 implementation of HMIS is carried out at Film City’s Hospital as a pilot project. Wave 2 of Phase 1 was planned to be implemented at other three major hospitals in the city and thereafter at balance health-care locations ( Mukul, 2018 ).

It was decided to form a committee to commence the viability and feasibility of Wi-Fi services project at Film City’s Hospital and the standing committee sanction was received for awarding the work for hardware and network implementation at the Phase I Hospitals and the LOI of worth Rs. 50+ crores for the prestigious project is issued to HardSystems and Solutions Limited. Further, a pilot implementation is planned to be carried out at few departments in Film City’s Hospital which “go-live” on 21st June 2018 ( MCGM IT Department, 2019 ).

Bid document for hospital management information system

The HMIS software pilot project at Film City’s Hospital was awarded to SoftSolutions Private Limited through evaluation of technical and commercial bids by e-tender process, initiated in July 2016. SoftSolutions, also as part of their scope, conducted a site survey for hardware infrastructure for all health-care institutions in the city. The exact quantity and minimum specifications for various hardware and infrastructure have been provided by SoftSolutions post site survey.

The purpose of this bid document is to select an agency for not only the supply but also the hardware and network components’ installation, testing, commissioning and maintenance for the health institutions.

A Bid Evaluation Committee (BEC) was appointed to examine and assess the submitted technical as well as commercial bids. The BEC reviewed the bids to decide if they’re really complete, able to respond and if the bid format complies with the bid specifications. In a bid that does not represent a material variance, it was waived for any informality or nonconformity and the bidder with the lowest cost submitted (L1 rate) in the commercial bid opening was awarded the contract.

Submission of inception report.

Supply, installation and commission of various hardware and network components along with required accessories at health institution.

Undertake required passive structured cabling (including patch chord, faceplate with input/output connector, laying of LAN and fiber cable (if required) with proper labeling, testing certificate and others).

The device should be tested before mass-installation (operating system compatibility, software, drivers, etc.).

The supplier should take care of all installation and support issues that are faced by the end-user, for all hardware and software supplied as part of the purchase order. This would include installation and support for security functions, user configuration, LAN configuration, etc.

Addition of a desktop PC to the security device is to be done by the implementation agency.

In-warranty annual technical support for hardware and network components services for a period of five years.

The following are additional points for the scope of the implementation agency:

The Wi-Fi/network device shall be connected to the local area network.

The supplier shall disable unnecessary services, protocols and ports.

When installing software, ensure that only required software is installed and the latest versions of all software including all recommended security patches are updated.

Disable or remove redundant software/services (including program, machine utilities and network services).

Pre-requisites for hospital management information system pilot project

The Assistant Medical Officer (AMO) of the hospital was appointed as the HMIS implementation nodal person from Film City’s Hospital for coordinating with the internet service provider and hardware supplier appointed by HardSystems and Solutions Limited, implementation of software by SoftSolutions and coordinating with various departments for providing solutions to any challenges faced.

Site readiness – the representative of SoftSolutions visited each department of the hospital for finalizing the network points, in consultation with the Head of Departments (HODs).

For the implementation of HMIS, one server room and one room for hardware and software support staff for the hospital and UPS room per building were identified and subsequently handed over to HardSystems and Solutions Limited, as per the specification ( The Hindu, 2018 ).

The support staff room was used by HardSystems and Solutions Limited for storing the equipment during the installation.

The civil work, if any, required for the network installation, server room and UPS room readiness was carried out by the Hospital Assistant Engineer (AE), Civil Department.

The furniture, if any, required for the HMIS hardware was identified and procurement was carried out by the Hospital M&E department.

The electrical work for HMIS implementation was carried out through the Chief Engineer (M&E) department. The concerned M&E engineer from the hospital coordinated with the representative of SoftSolutions and HardSystems and Solutions Limited.

Hardware and software implementation

As the number of patients was increasing in the waiting areas of the clinical departments, Deputy Medical Superintendent took a round with HMIS nodal officer to locate any patient-free area or store rooms in IPD building.

After the functional requirement study and the hardware survey did from June to September, 2016, the Digital Laboratory and Security room on ground floor of IPD building of the Film City’s Hospital was allotted for hardware storage. A 24 × 7 helpdesk was also created to give instant solutions to the arising issues in the software or hardware.

As per directives, 200 customized portable computer trolleys (to be used for computer-on-wheels) were provided as per the requirements and storage area in the departments.

Under Software Research Survey (SRS) up to September 2016, software customization for medical specialties was done after studying the workflow of major hospitals of Mumbai, for surgical specialties, radiology and central sterile services. Sub-committees were formed in each of these hospitals to monitor the process of customization of software, and sessions to sensitize nursing staff, technicians, pharmacists, registration attendants, etc. were conducted across all the hospitals. Weekly or sometimes fortnightly review meetings were held at the Film City’s Hospital. Also, various teams visited multiple public, private and trust hospitals across the city to study already existing HMIS implemented in these hospitals ( MCGM IT Department, 2019 ).

User acceptance tests and finalization of hospital management information system modules

Documented literature suggests that the degree of end-user satisfaction is a pivotal factor of an information system’s success ( Bailey and Pearson, 1983 ). Many other studies have stressed the significance of levels of end-user satisfaction ( Doll and Torkzadeh, 1988 ; DeLone and McLean, 1992 ).

During the user acceptance test-1 (UAT-1), there were 517 observations noted in module testing which was carried out up to March 21, 2017, by the doctors and other representatives.

Thereafter, in April 2017, a UAT observation confirmation process (also known as system requirement specification reconfirmation) was carried out by SoftSolutions with representatives from various health-care facilities who were assigned for each module so as to prepare SRS 1.1 with more precise information and requirement to aid the development of HMIS.

With reference to the OPD module, about 318 proformas from 29 departments were handed over to SoftSolutions on 9th June 2017 for developing the EMR for the OPD module. Considering each proforma was unique and also an easy-to-use system is to be developed, SoftSolutions has developed a solution and the same was shown to a team of doctors of each department concerned with the OPD module to check the functionality and provide their inputs for the same, so that the precise requirement can be incorporated in the SRS 1.1.

Further, SoftSolutions have documented the information provided during and after the UAT 1 and UAT/SRS reconfirmation in the latest SRS version 1.1 and the same was ascertained by the team of representatives who had provided the information during the UAT/SRS reconfirmation and corrected the same if necessary and provided the sign-off for the respective module SRS 1.1. On completion of the activity, UAT-2 (inter-module) and thereafter UAT-3 (integrated) were planned to be conducted.

On the basis of all the three UAT and UAT observation confirmation processes conducted for different modules, there were a number of change requests made by concerned HODs/departments which after approval from nodal officers were incorporated through some policy decisions for requirements which were taken by the administration.

It was finalized by the management that the short message service (SMS) would be used for registration and inpatient referral only. It is not necessary to send SMS for every activity. For easy workflow of IT services, digital signatures were assigned for important decisions, for legal, medico-legal cases, birth and death certificates.

Recruitment of data entry operators and training of hospital staffs

Deployment of data entry operators (DEOs) for assisting the hospital staff related to the implementation of HMIS was done through prescribed norms of recruitment for different departments for three working shifts.

The training was well planned by a team of SoftSolutions and all the requirements including space and other resources were allocated. Training was done in two parts, which involved orientation lectures and hands-on session conducted in the first and second weeks of February 2018, respectively.

It was decided to use India’s first indigenous Web-based PACS Medsynapse for training doctors and staff of radiology department. It is developed on advanced technologies and provided a full range of features and tools for image processing, distribution and archival. It is very user-friendly, scalable and affordable PACS with more than 20,000 installations in 40 countries.

A training completion certificate on specific HMIS module was awarded to each employee after successful completion of training.

For the purpose of logging into HMIS computers and application, employee’s ID-based default login and password systems were generated, which were later allowed to reset by the users. Thus, all the resident doctors and other staff got access to the HMIS system.

An HMIS refreshment training with proper consultation with Team SoftSolutions was provided once again in October 2018 after proper implementation of all the 32 modules in the system.

Dry run and go-live

A dry run was conducted in the selected clinical and supportive services departments of Film City’s Hospital in Phase 1 from April to June 2018. After the required improvements needed the pilot project “go-live” for Phase 1 of Wave 1 from 21st June 2018 ( MCGM RTI, 2019 ).

Overcoming hospital management information system challenges

Provision of an inadequate quantity of hardware either because of lack of storage space or because of unavailability of furniture and computer trolleys had become a major impediment in the efforts to maximize the number of patients registered into HMIS at Film City’s Hospital, e.g. super-specialties such as nephrology and gastroenterology have an average outpatient load of around 100–150 patients per OPD. But only three computers have been provided for doctors and one for the nursing staff in the OPD of super-specialties.

Because of the slowness of the network or the system, particularly after 11:00 a.m., patients are inconvenienced as they have to wait for long periods till the EMRs are filled and prescriptions and laboratory/radiology requisitions are generated. At times, patients are reluctant to wait for the procedure to be completed. Consequently, only a few requisitions of laboratory and radiology investigations had been processed through the system. It was decided to put more LAN cables but when the issues persist, new Wi-Fi dongles were thought to be procured for every department in the future ( DNA, 2019 ).

Also, a major challenge is that integration of HMIS with various government and insurance schemes is to be undertaken and also a separate budget is to be allocated for HMIS consumables.

HMIS Nodal Officer conducted an immediate evaluation and the following challenges were reported to be faced by some important clinical and supportive services departments.

Department of gastroenterology

One of the issues of the gastroenterology was that all the hospitals in the film city were using different systems for capturing endoscopy reports. Also other investigations such as manometry, PH, fibroscan and breath hydrogen were intended to be managed well so that different reports and PDF can be uploaded in HMIS. The report’s structure given in HMIS was discussed with concerned IT team to check for the network link to the system.

Department of psychiatry

As soon as the recreational activities started for the admitted patients, the HOD of Psychiatry Department entered the IPD area. HMIS Nodal Officer was waiting for him to ask for required modifications.

He said, “Wires need to be covered to protect against damage by the psychiatric patients. Sub-departments like Psychology, Social worker and EEG are also to be included in the system.” HMIS Nodal Officer carefully noted the desired changes. When inquired about the psychiatric OPD, implementation of electronic queue management system monitor was suggested.

Pediatrics department

On meeting with the Professor of Pediatrics while he was checking the nutritional chart for a three-year-old child, the Nodal Officer asks her to raise the concerns regarding HMIS implementation. She swiftly enumerated that the weight, age and height data have to be integrated for making relevant WHO charts and growth curves for classifying patients with severe acute malnutrition or moderate acute malnutrition. She added, immunization record is also to be included in IPD paper. If a vaccine is missing as per national immunization program, a warning has to come on the system. Automatic calculation of surface area is required for prescribing certain drugs. Integration with certain government schemes is also required.

Opening her smart tablet, the HMIS Nodal Officer checked the relevant schemes available in the Film City’s Hospital and asked, “Should Janani Suraksha Scheme also be integrated?” for which she got the affirmative response.

Professor of Pediatrics explained to the Nodal Officer that daily reporting/monthly data have to be available disaggregated in terms of age, gender, notifiable diseases and monsoon-related illness. In addition, the multiple diagnoses have to get sited separately because they are not mutually exclusive. Also, referral list has to be made comprehensive to include physiotherapy, occupational therapy, dietetics and speech therapy in addition to clinical/lab departments.

Radiology department

With the use of Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine standard and Health Level 7 communication protocol, vendors communicate with the radiology imaging management system termed PACS. Undoubtedly, a major concern in radiology department is to combine the images of each analysis with other important patient records and enhance interoperability with radiology information system and HMIS ( Cummings, 1995 ; Offenmuller, 1997 ).

According to recommendations of PACS Support Engineer given to HMIS Nodal Officer of Film City’s Hospital, “open office” does not support PACS reporting. In addition, the automatic transfer of stored images from USG machine to HMIS was not taking place. Therefore, the HOD of Radiology requested that the licensed access to 3D-MPR viewing be provided to all the radiology employees, including CT/MRI technicians. Furthermore, with the view of additional CT and MRI machines being instilled with additional workload in the near future, approximately 70 licensed accesses needed to be made available to increase the ease, efficiency and speed of reporting. The licensed MS office is also preferred to maintain the integrity and uniformity of the departmental work.

Also, while reporting the patient on PACS, considerable time was consumed in logging in as well as in opening a particular patient. It was difficult to interpret whether the slowness could be attributed to the slow speed of the network or slowness of the operating software.

In addition to this, there was the need for early integration of revenue counter and the central laboratory with the HMIS system for the better functioning.

Laboratory and diagnostics services

Diagnostics is a data-intensive specialty, and laboratory data is often used in addition to patient services to record continuous improvement, performance management, outcome analyses and research studies ( Cowan, 2005 ; Young, 2000 ). At the center of most laboratory activities is the laboratory information system. Workflow management, specimen monitoring, data entry and reporting, regulatory enforcement assistance, code acquisition, interfacing with several other applications, archiving, inventory management and provision of billing information are its features (Eleveitch and Spackman, 2001; Pearson et al. , 2006 ).

For appointment generation counter: token generation facility for the same-day blood collection of patients has to be incorporated in the system. For the token generation, a fast printer device was required as a large number of patients need to be handed over in a short period of time.

For labeling counter

Quality of bar code labels need to be improved. Printouts sometimes are not readable and may face problem in scanning. The problem was discussed with the Project Director, HMIS.

Consumables such as printer roll, appropriate sized labels are not easily available in the hospital.

For collection table: It was discussed with the IT in charge, SoftSolutions, that wall-mounted all-in-one PC units with bar code scanner facility or tablets with in-built scanner need to be installed in OPD for scanning the collected blood samples.

Blood sample processing: Appropriate diagnostic equipment such as blood cell counter and automated biochemistry analyzer have to be procured, which can be integrated with HMIS.

Blood bank services

The blood bank system consists of an autonomous blood center responsible for human blood procurement, storage and distribution ( Li et al. , 2007 ). Because blood bank services are vital segment of the Film City’s Hospital and there were major concerns raised by the employees in the department, Medical Superintendent called for an urgent board meeting ( Tables 1 ).

A unique number was given to each blood bag in the blood bank. This number is followed through the life of that blood bag, i.e. the same number applies at blood group, serological tests, stock taking, cross-matching and issue of blood bag to patients. As on 30th July 2018, the blood bank numbers were at “Indoor 905,” “Outdoor 9888” and “Brought from i.e. BF 1186.”

The HMIS data entries in Blood Bank were attempted since 26th July 2018; however, the HMIS software is unable to match the actual bag numbers because it begins by default 001, 002, 003, etc. Because of this error, the outdoor bag number 8434 may be entered in HMIS as bag number 0004, indoor bag number 894 entered in HMIS as bag number 0005 and so on.

This numbering system, if continued, could have created utter chaos at all levels. Online bloodstock will show wrong bag numbers available to technicians for a cross-match. Issued bags will not correspond to the actual blood bag issued, thus resulting in confusion at a blood bank and clinician level.

In addition, serious mistakes in identifying and discarding of seropositive bags (HIV, Hepatitis B, etc.) can occur because of an incorrect numbering system.

Given the sensitive nature of blood bank work, the slightest error in numbering can cause disastrous results for the patient’s life. Any kind of dual numbering system, as suggested by the HMIS technical team, will further compound the problem, double the workload and invite severe adverse remarks from the FDA.

Because Film City’s Hospital is stationed for the pilot study, any errors can get carried forward and adversely affect the working of other hospitals and other blood banks too. In view of this serious medico-legal and ethical implications, it is essential that HMIS number entries have to categorically match with available numbering for blood bags.

Pharmacy prescriptions and dispensary services

In outpatient health care, the drug management process is a multifaceted relationship between patients, prescribers and pharmacists, which is also enabled by HMIS ( Tamblyn, 2004 ). Electronic medication management has the ability to allow a secure process, but errors may also be created ( Bates et al. , 2001 ).

At Film City’s Hospital, after consultation with head pharmacist, HMIS Nodal Officer noted that a standard prescription format should include name of the drug, preparation, strength, dose, route of administration, frequency and number of days. The route of drug administration should be comprehensive and must also include intradermal, intra-thecal and intra-ocular routes.

It was recommended that the prescriptions need to be in terms of both generic and brand names. Allergies must be a mandatory field, which needs to be pop out during prescriptions. Starting and end dates should be integrated especially for drugs with progressive decreasing doses. At once, no medicines should be prescribed for more than one month.

It was suggested to improvise the SAP system, based on the positive features of government’s “e-Aushadi program” which includes:

Need for surplus and shortage alerts.

Rigorous quality control of medicines should be mandatory and built-in using impaneled NABL-accredited laboratory.

Achieving the milestones

The HMIS is being implemented to improve the quality and responsiveness of health-care services in health-care network in the film city ( Tables 2 and 3 ).

Features of hospital management information system implementation at Film City’s Hospital

The unique features of the HMIS system at Film City’s Hospital are that this system is first of its kind in any of the city’s hospitals that uses a cloud-based centrally located system in which as much as 32 clinical and supportive services HMIS modules are covered. It is made possible to achieve inter-departmental and intra-departmental connectivity in Film City’s Hospital through this system. In addition, this cloud-based system also allows central access to data through any city’s health-care systems, thus enhancing inter-hospitals connectivity ( MCGM RTI, 2019 ).

Hospital management information system implementation – the road ahead

There is a lack of DEOs in some departments. To enhance the time and cost-effectiveness and to achieve digitization through increasing reach to more number of patients, it was decided to implement “Speech to Text” software in the OPDs based on the principle of “machine learning.” The SoftSolutions team has already started taking voice samples of the doctors in the OPDs, and to test the effectiveness of the software, the trial run has been started in the Psychiatry and General Medicine OPD of Film City’s Hospital.

Also, at the registration department, issue of digitalized health card to every patient with Unique Hospital Identification Number and bar coding on it has been started. In the future, the bar scanners will be incorporated to save time at various points in the hospital.

Most of the users are still very resistant in the use of technology in the hospital as they are adapted to traditional manual data entry and calculation methods. The percentage of EMR completion still has to be improved.

Deputy Medical Superintendent along with the HMIS Nodal Officer discussed with the Medical Superintendent, Film City’s Hospital that there is a need for adoption of “John Kotter’s Eight-Step Plan” for implementing change for user acceptability for the overall organizational development and to reinforce the future dream which she had seen of digitalized health-care systems in digitalized India.

Several studies on implementation of HMIS in developed countries ( Ash et al. , 2003 ; Ball, 2003 ; Berg, 2001 ; Benson, 2002 ; Little Johns et al. , 2003 , Joel Rodrigues, 2009 ; Lippeveld et al. , 1992 ; Dudeck et al. , 1997 ) had reported various challenges, including those in managing infrastructure, integration, inter-departmental issues, technical requirements, data and software issues, end-user contribution, standardization of terminologies, training needs and ignorance of hospital administration. In developing nations, numerous health-care professionals associate information systems with filling of infinite registers, collecting information and submitting reports without sufficient input, making HMIS “data-driven” instead of “action-driven” ( Sandiford et al. , 1992 ; Smith et al. , 1988 ). Similarly, in this case study, although being an Indian hospital, managing infrastructure in terms of space for computers, trolleys and other accessories became a major challenge. Allocating areas for installing LAN and rooms for information technologist in a crowded hospital was not that easy task. In this case study, the hospital also faced inter-departmental and inter-hospitals issues with respect to integration and standardization of clinical domains and report structures, respectively. Even after adopting the HMIS principles in several trainings, many employees, especially elder age, felt the need for technical assistance. In addition, the poor doctor–patient ratio and the downtime of the server made the work more complicated as in some of the departments, employees started doing dual entries (both in register and computer) to prevent loss of any data.

Several issues have been identified in the review of reports and studies in low-income countries ( Gladwin, 1999 ), such as general organizational and management difficulties ( Campbell et al. , 1996 ; Braa et al. , 1997 ; Azubuike and Ehiri, 1999 ); data acquisition and processing concerns ( Robey and Lee, 1990 ; Jayasuiriya, 1999 ; Lippeveld et al. , 2000 ); inadequate use of information (WHO, 1994b, 1999; Braa et al. , 1997 ); over-reliance on epidemiological data or specific surveys ( Husein et al. , 1993 ; Sapirie and Orzeszyna, 1995 ); and paucity of an integrated information strategy for the organization ( Van Der Lei et al. , 1993 ). In a similar way, in this case study also, many departments in the hospitals faced challenges around complexity, inconsistency and poor integrity of the system. Although the management tried to ensure the effectiveness, incidents such as mismatch in blood bag numbering in HMIS posed a major ethical issue. There were multiple concerns around data acquisition at revenue and cost centers of the hospital. Although management took corrective and preventive actions, it was reflective of a strategy which would have been well integrated prior with clinical understanding and principles of change management.

Several studies have been conducted on interface design methodologies ( Shearer et al. , 1997 ; Arreola et al. , 1997 ), and among the unidirectional, bidirectional and integrated workstations ( Levine, 1990 ), the interface with more consistent information base is most preferred ( Veader, 1997 ). Studies have reported that an integrated radiology network enhances the efficacy of physicians, minimizes costs, decreases the amount of repetitive or unnecessary tests and increases the quality of care ( Gibby and Mciff, 1997 ). In addition, owing to the extensive adoption of electronic radiology reporting systems, filmless radiology systems and speech recognition, there have also been considerable radiology workflow efficiency improvements ( Mariani et al. , 2006 ; Gay et al. , 2002 ; White, 2005 ; Ralston et al. , 2004 ). Similarly, in this case study, it was observed that with administrative efforts and understanding employee training needs, the number of repetitive tests was reduced. There was a direct benefit in lowering turnaround time and publishing more reports. The better integration and consistency of the PACS will help in increasing the profit per unit volume for the radiology department.

HMIS is important in its ability to resolve issues such as increasing laboratory volume with outreach programs; intensified EMRs integration; and the subsequent need to combine fragmented information systems, laboratory resource shortages, patient safety, cost control, central control of subspecialties, rising demand for laboratory diagnostics and customized intervention ( Becich et al. , 2004 ; Sinard and Morrow, 2001 ). In this case study also, HMIS-integrated EMR played a significant role in decreasing the average waiting time for the patients for receiving the laboratory reports.

Child clinicians frequently feel that there is little utility of health information systems in pediatrics because they tend to be structured for adult services ( Johnson, 2001 ). There are several functional areas, such as immunization records ( Smith, 1988 ), growth monitoring ( Rosenbloom et al. , 2006 ), drug dosing ( American Academy of Pediatrics, 2004 ), patient recognition ( Kuther, 2003 ) and decision support systems ( Miller et al. , 2001 ), which are so vital to the treatment of children and adolescents that their omission contributes to the system hindering quality pediatric care. In this case study, with the discussion with HMIS Nodal Officer, the pediatric department was able to design a customized module which had unique characteristics as compared to any adult-based systems. Drug dosage and calculations, immunizations and growth-monitoring systems were integrated successfully.

Literatures have shown that implementation of computerized blood bank inventory and emergency services ( Catassi and Petersen, 1967 ) and blood bag system ( Ali et al. , 2017 ) plays a significant part in hospital’s decision-making systems ( Li et al. , 2008 ). Similar results were observed in this case study also.

Mohapatra (2009) notes that combining in-patient, pathological and inventory management of hospital pharmaceutical stores enables to enhance the quality of service and efficiency while reducing operating costs. This economic benefits can be reflected in the price, which gives customers more good value. The use of HMIS has been proposed as a way to minimize prescription errors by increasing the readability, standardization and availability of information or providing automatic controls for possible drug-related issues, but the findings are inconsistent ( Huckvale et al. , 2010 ; McKibbon et al. , 2011 , 2012 ). In this case study, the findings suggested that the use of HMIS was helpful in inventory management once the employee got well trained in inventory modules and it generated profitability for the hospital.

Literature shows that during the process of automation, important performance variables involved in the phase of change management are organizational structure, technology infrastructure and implementation approach ( Galliers and Sutherland, 1991 ; Lubitz and Wickramasinghe, 2006 ; Nolan, Norton and CO, 1992 ). Emergent philosophy is more complex ( Markus and Robey, 1988 ) than imperative perspectives ( Robey and Boudreau, 1999 ), stressing a reciprocal instead of a one-way relationship involving technology and organization. Findings of this case study suggest that the management should have strategically thought about the change management perspectives in a visionary sense before taking the step for HMIS implementation. Most of the elder employees were resistant to change and found the system more complex. In terms of ease of use of HMIS, more than half of the employees were either neutral or disagreed in their responses.

hospital management system project methodology

Mumbai city map

hospital management system project methodology

Picture showing patient health card with UHID and bar coding

Discussion in the meeting conducted at Medical Superintendent’s office, Film City’s Hospital between authorities and the users on the HMIS challenges of blood bank

Progress of HMIS implementation at Film City’s Hospital up to February 2019

Digitization through electronic medical records (EMRs) at Film City’s Hospital

Table showing distribution of customized computer trolleys at Film City’s Hospital

Changes in key performance indicators (KPIs) at Film City’s Hospital after HMIS implementation

Average time spent per service

Average gain per unit volume of the services

Employees ( n = 75) responses for HMIS

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Further reading

Chaudhry , B. , Wang , J. , Wu , S. , Maglione , M. , Mojica , W. , Roth , E. , Morton , S.C. and Shekelle , P.G. ( 2006 ), “ Systematic review: Impact of health information technology on quality, efficiency and costs of medical care, improving patient care ”, Annals of Internal Medicine , Vol. 144 No. 10 , pp. 742 - 752 .

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Lanzara , G.F. ( 2008 ), “ Building digital institutions: ICT and the rise of assemblages in government ”, in Contini and Lanzara (Eds) , ICT and Innovation in the Public Sector. European Studies in the Making of E-Government , Palgrave Macmillan , Basingstoke , pp. 9 - 48 .

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Hospital Management System Project Plan Template

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Managing a hospital is no easy task, especially when it comes to handling patient records, appointments, and staff scheduling. That's why having a well-structured project plan is essential for successfully implementing a hospital management system. With ClickUp's Hospital Management System Project Plan Template, you can streamline the entire process from start to finish.

This comprehensive template empowers healthcare technology companies to:

  • Outline all the necessary tasks and milestones required for system development and implementation
  • Allocate resources effectively to ensure a smooth and efficient process
  • Track progress and stay on top of deadlines to keep the project on schedule

Whether you're building a new hospital management system or upgrading an existing one, ClickUp's template will help you navigate the complexities of the project and achieve successful results. Streamline your hospital management process with ClickUp today!

Hospital Management System Project Plan Template Benefits

A well-designed Hospital Management System Project Plan Template offers a range of benefits to healthcare technology companies and hospitals, including:

  • Streamlining the development and implementation process for hospital management systems
  • Ensuring a clear understanding of project requirements, tasks, and timelines
  • Facilitating effective resource allocation and management
  • Enhancing collaboration and communication among project stakeholders
  • Providing a structured framework for tracking progress and identifying any potential bottlenecks or delays
  • Improving overall project efficiency and reducing costs
  • Ensuring successful deployment and adoption of the hospital management system, leading to improved patient care and operational efficiency.

Main Elements of Hospital Management System Project Plan Template

ClickUp’s Hospital Management System Project Plan template provides a comprehensive framework to streamline the development and implementation of hospital management systems. Key elements of this template include:

  • Custom Statuses: Track the progress of tasks with statuses such as Complete, In Progress, and To Do, ensuring transparency and accountability throughout the project.
  • Custom Fields: Utilize custom fields to capture important information related to the project, such as Task Owner, Estimated Completion Date, and Priority, allowing for better organization and planning.
  • Doc View: Collaboratively create and edit project documentation, outlining project objectives, scope, milestones, and deliverables.
  • Board View: Visualize the project tasks and their progress on a Kanban board, enabling easy task management and tracking.
  • List View: View the project tasks in a structured list format, facilitating detailed planning, task prioritization, and progress monitoring.

With ClickUp’s Hospital Management System Project Plan template, healthcare technology companies can effectively manage the development and implementation of hospital management systems, ensuring seamless operations in healthcare facilities.

How To Use Hospital Management System Project Plan Template

Managing a hospital project can be complex, but with the Hospital Management System Project Plan Template in ClickUp, you can streamline the process and ensure successful implementation. Follow these steps to effectively use the template:

1. Define project scope and objectives

Start by clearly defining the scope and objectives of your hospital management system project. Determine what specific features and functionalities you want to include, such as patient registration, appointment scheduling, billing, and electronic health records (EHR). Establishing a clear scope will help you stay focused throughout the project.

Use the Goals feature in ClickUp to set and track your project objectives.

2. Identify key stakeholders and their roles

Identify the key stakeholders involved in the hospital management system project, such as hospital administrators, IT staff, doctors, nurses, and patients. Assign specific roles and responsibilities to each stakeholder to ensure effective collaboration and accountability.

Create tasks in ClickUp and assign them to each stakeholder to keep track of their responsibilities.

3. Develop a project timeline

Create a project timeline that outlines the key milestones and deadlines for each phase of the hospital management system project. Consider factors such as software development, testing, training, and implementation. Breaking down the project into smaller tasks will make it more manageable and ensure timely completion.

Utilize the Gantt chart feature in ClickUp to create a visual representation of your project timeline.

4. Allocate necessary resources

Determine the resources required for the successful implementation of the hospital management system. This includes human resources, such as developers and trainers, as well as technological resources, such as hardware and software. Allocate these resources based on the project timeline and ensure they are readily available.

Use the Workload view in ClickUp to allocate resources and ensure a balanced workload for your team members.

5. Monitor progress and make adjustments

Regularly monitor the progress of the hospital management system project and make adjustments as needed. Hold regular meetings with stakeholders to assess progress, identify any challenges, and make necessary modifications to the project plan. This will help you stay on track and ensure the project's success.

Set up recurring tasks in ClickUp to schedule progress meetings and track any adjustments made throughout the project.

With the Hospital Management System Project Plan Template and ClickUp's powerful features, you can effectively manage your hospital project and deliver a successful hospital management system.

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Healthcare technology companies can use the Hospital Management System Project Plan Template to efficiently develop and implement hospital management systems in healthcare facilities.

First, hit "Add Template" to sign up for ClickUp and add the template to your Workspace. Make sure you designate which Space or location in your Workspace you'd like this template applied.

Next, invite relevant members or guests to your Workspace to start collaborating.

Now you can take advantage of the full potential of this template to manage your hospital management system project:

  • Use the Doc view to create and share project documentation, including requirements, specifications, and user manuals.
  • The Board view will help you visualize and manage tasks using a Kanban-style board, allowing you to track progress and easily move tasks between different stages.
  • The List view provides a detailed overview of all tasks, allowing you to sort and filter them based on various criteria.
  • Customize the template by adding custom fields to capture additional information, such as task priority, assigned team members, and estimated effort.
  • Organize tasks into three different statuses: Complete, In Progress, and To Do, to track their progress.
  • Update task statuses as you work on them to keep team members informed of progress.
  • Monitor and analyze tasks to ensure the successful development and implementation of the hospital management system.
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Hospital Management System: What, Why And How?

Updated on January 18, 2024

hospital management system project methodology

Let’s begin with getting a basic understanding about a Hospital Management System (HMS). 

“A hospital management system (HMS) can be defined as an integrated software that handles different aspects of clinic workflows, such as administrative, medical, legal, and financial.”

It is a wise investment for healthcare organizations as it can drastically improve the quality of patient care and the efficiency of healthcare services. 

In fact, an HMS can help meet specific objectives and attain goals such as:

  • I mproving patient experience by creating a convenient and seamless patient experience 
  • Reducing the workload and stress of managing paperwork by streamlining workflows
  • Preventing or minimizing errors such as misdiagnosis, medication errors, billing errors, etc. 
  • Enhancing quality of patient care by facilitating collaboration and consultation with other specialists or departments.
  • Increasing revenue as a result of all the above efficiencies

In this blog post, we will provide a comprehensive guide on how to choose, implement, and use an HMS effectively for your hospital. We will also cover the main components or modules of an HMS. This includes appointment management , patient record management, staff management, billing and insurance, inventory management, etc.

hospital management system project methodology

From Chaos To Order: The Many Benefits Of Using A Hospital Management System

From a bird’s eye view, an HMS system helps bring order to chaos in running a healthcare organization. Although the bigger benefits accrue to the organization, at a ground level, each stakeholder group forming part of the organization stands to benefit individually and collectively from the system.

Let’s understand the benefits better with a stakeholder-based analysis. 

Benefits that an HMS system can provide to patients

An HMS can provide a convenient and seamless experience for booking appointments, accessing medical records, paying bills, receiving reminders and notifications, etc. It can also improve the quality and safety of care by reducing errors, delays, and complications. An HMS can also enhance patient satisfaction and loyalty by providing personalized and customized services, such as online consultations, feedback surveys, loyalty programs, etc.

hospital management system project methodology

Benefits that an HMS system can provide to healthcare providers 

An HMS can reduce the workload and stress of managing paperwork, data entry, communication, coordination, etc. It can also improve the accuracy and quality of data and information by eliminating duplication, inconsistency, and incompleteness. An HMS can also facilitate collaboration and cooperation among healthcare providers by enabling information sharing, consultation, referral, etc.

hospital management system project methodology

Benefits that an HMS system can provide to doctors

An HMS can enhance the clinical decision- making and diagnosis process by providing easy access to patient history, test results, prescriptions, etc. It can also facilitate collaboration and consultation with other specialists or departments by enabling video conferencing, telemedicine, etc. An HMS can also improve the efficiency and productivity of doctors by automating tasks such as scheduling, billing, reporting, etc.

hospital management system project methodology

Benefits that an HMS system can provide to hospital administrators or management 

An HMS can provide real-time insights and reports on the performance and outcomes of the hospital. It can also help in planning and budgeting, resource allocation, quality improvement, risk management, etc. An HMS can also increase the profitability and competitiveness of the hospital by optimizing processes, reducing costs, increasing revenue, attracting and retaining customers, etc.

Of course, all these stakeholders will not be using all the components or modules of an HMS. They use specific components or modules that make day-to-day responsibilities easy to execute. 

Let’s dive into the major components and modules that make up a hospital management system. 

The Essential components that make up a Hospital Management System

In an HMS,  each component or module performs specific functions and tasks related to the hospital operations. Some of the common components or modules are:

1. Appointment Management 

Every hospital needs a convenient and hassle-free process of providing appointments to patients . The appointment management module enables patients to book, modify, or cancel appointments online. It follows a logical process to match the patient’s illness to the doctor’s expertise. This helps in providing convenience and flexibility to the patients in availing, and the doctors by reducing no-shows and optimizing their schedules.

2. Patient Record Management 

The function of this component is to store and manage all patient-related information, like medical history, diagnosis, treatment, medication, etc., in a structured and organized fashion. The module serves both the patients and the doctors with easy access to historical medical information that could give insights about the next steps in improving the patient’s health or dealing with their ailments. 

3. Clinical Workflow 

Every software needs to follow a specific workflow, right from creation until approval and archival, to ensure consistency. The clinical workflow component helps design the entire patient-hospital relationship by detailing the clinical processes and procedures that take place in the hospital.

This includes recording admission, discharge, transfer, referral, etc. or providing alerts and reminders for critical events or actions. 

4. Staff Management 

This component manages all the information related to the staff’s qualifications, roles, responsibilities, schedules, payroll, etc. It also facilitates communication and coordination among staff members. This component benefits the staff by reducing their workload and stress and the hospital administrators or management by improving staff efficiency and productivity.

5. Billing and Insurance 

This component generates bills and invoices for the services provided by the hospital. It also handles insurance claims and reimbursements. This component benefits the patients by providing transparent and accurate billing information and the hospital administrators or management by increasing revenue and reducing costs.

hospital management system project methodology

6. Inventory Management 

This component tracks and manages the inventory of medical equipment, supplies, drugs, etc. It also ensures optimal utilization and availability of resources. This component benefits the healthcare providers by providing them with the necessary resources for their work and the hospital administrators or management by reducing wastage and losses.

7. Supply Chain Management

This component manages the procurement, distribution, storage, and disposal of medical materials and goods. It also coordinates with suppliers, vendors, distributors, etc. This component benefits the healthcare providers by ensuring timely and quality delivery of supplies and the hospital administrators or management by optimizing supply chain performance and reducing risks.

8. Financial Management 

This component handles the financial transactions and records of the hospital. It also provides financial analysis and reporting. This component benefits hospital administrators or management by providing them with financial insights and guidance for decision-making and planning.

9. Reporting and Analytics 

This component provides various reports and dashboards on the performance and outcomes of the hospital. It also provides data visualization and analytics tools for data exploration and discovery. This component benefits the hospital administrators or management by providing them with actionable information and intelligence for quality improvement and strategic development.

Factors to Consider While Choosing a Hospital Management System

Choosing or building an HMS is a crucial decision for your hospital, as it can affect the quality and efficiency of your healthcare services. It is also indirectly related to the satisfaction and loyalty of your patients and staff. Therefore, you should consider all possible factors before selecting or developing an HMS that suits your needs and goals, such as:

1. Must be rich in features/Capabilities

The HMS should have all the features and functions that you require for your hospital operations. You should identify your current and future needs, gaps, and opportunities and evaluate the available options and solutions in the market. You should also consider the compatibility and integration of the HMS with your existing systems and devices, including  healthcare security systems , employee communications platforms and building management tools.

2. It should be user-friendly

The HMS should be easy to use and navigate for both staff and patients. It should have a user-friendly interface and design, as well as clear and simple instructions and guidance. It should also provide training and support materials for the users to learn and master the HMS. Ideally, the learning curve should not be steep so that any user can easily master the system and start using it effectively.

3. Must be easily scalable

The HMS should be able to accommodate the growth and expansion of your hospital. The HMS should be able to handle the increasing volume and complexity of data and transactions, as well as the changing needs and expectations of your customers and stakeholders. It should also be flexible and adaptable to new technologies and innovations.

hospital management system project methodology

4. It should have maximum uptime

The HMS should be able to perform consistently and accurately without errors or glitches. More brownie points if it can provide maximum uptime with minimal downtime for maintenance or outages. In case of downtime, the system vendor should be able to implement the recovery process and restore system access immediately. Last, but not the least, it should also have a backup and disaster recovery system in case of any failure or disaster.

5. Should be high on security 

Patient healthcare data is the most sensitive data there is. The HMS should be able to protect patient data and admin information about your hospital from all imaginable unauthorized access or breach. Further, it should be compliant with all applicable relevant laws and regulations regarding user data privacy and security, such as HIPAA, GDPR , etc. As an additional layer of security, the HMS must have encryption, authentication, authorization, and auditing mechanisms to ensure data security and integrity.

6. It should be affordable

The HMS should be affordable and within your budget. Further, the pricing structure and payment terms should be transparent and predictable. If you’re to get positive ROI from implementing the HMS, it should also be low maintenance, implying requiring minimal hardware investment or maintenance. The ideal choice would be a cloud-based HMS. 

These are some of the factors to consider while choosing or building an HMS for your hospital. By considering these factors, you can select or develop an HMS that meets your requirements and expectations, as well as enhances your performance and outcomes.

Challenges Faced While Implementing an HMS

Implementing an HMS in your hospital is not an easy task, as it involves various technical, organizational, and human factors. 

Some of the challenges that you may face while implementing an HMS are:

1. Confronting technical issues 

You may encounter technical issues, such as software bugs, hardware failures, network problems, compatibility issues, etc., while implementing an HMS. These issues may affect the functionality and performance of the HMS, as well as cause delays and disruptions in your hospital operations. 

Remedy to overcome this challenge:

Enlist a reliable and experienced vendor or developer who can pitch in to fix glitches on a real-time basis. You may also consider engaging them on Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) to provide timely and quality technical support and maintenance. 

2. Overcoming stakeholder resistance to change 

You may face staff members’ resistance to change while implementing an HMS. It is natural for some staff members to show reluctance or unwillingness to adopt the new system. They could cite several reasons such as lack of awareness, lack of training, lack of trust, fear of losing their jobs, etc. The good news is, this is a common challenge not only with HMS implementation, but with all forms of software implementation.

Communicate and engage with your staff members throughout the implementation process. You should also provide them with adequate training and support on how to use the HMS effectively. You should also address their concerns and feedback, and highlight the benefits and value of the HMS for them.

3. Managing change and transition 

You may face change and transition challenges while implementing an HMS. It calls for an extensive requirement of your existing workflows, approval processes, org policies, user roles, privileges, etc. to align with the new system. 

To manage this change and transition smoothly, you should have a clear and realistic plan and timeline for the implementation project. You should also have a dedicated and competent team who can lead and manage the project effectively. You should also monitor and evaluate the progress and outcomes of the project regularly.

These are some of the challenges that you may face while implementing an HMS in your hospital and the remedies that can provide some respite. By anticipating and addressing these challenges proactively, you can implement an HMS successfully and efficiently.

How to Implement an HMS in Your Hospital

Implementing an HMS in your hospital is a complex and challenging project. If you follow these six broad steps to implementing a Hospital Management System, it could be easier. 

  • Development

1. Planning 

The first step is where you define the scope, objectives, timeline, budget, and roles of the implementation project. You should also identify the stakeholders, risks, challenges, and expectations of the project.

2. Analysis

Once the planning is done, analyze the current situation – point zero and make an inventory of the needs, gaps, and opportunities of your hospital. You should also evaluate the available options, solutions, and vendors for the HMS. Once this is done, conduct a feasibility study and a cost-benefit analysis of implementing the HMS.

Assuming the cost-benefit analysis turns out to be positive, proceed to design the architecture, configuration, customization, integration, and testing of the HMS. Prepare the technical documentation and user training materials for the HMS during the same stage.

4. Development 

Ensure that the development proceeds in tandem with the design specifications. Perform quality assurance and testing periodically to ensure the functionality and performance of the HMS. You should also resolve any technical issues or problems that may arise during the development process and before proceeding to the deployment phase.

hospital management system project methodology

5. Deployment 

Do a test launch of the HMS in your hospital. Choose a plot group to use the system before rolling it out as an org-wide compatible system. Further, to ease change management, you should also provide training and support to your staff and customers on how to use the HMS effectively. You should also communicate and engage with your stakeholders throughout the deployment process to ensure their satisfaction and loyalty.

6. Evaluation

Even with all planning, testing and deployment, some errors are bound to slip through the cracks. To continuously improve the system, evaluate the outcomes and impacts of the HMS on your hospital operations. You should also monitor and measure the key performance indicators (KPIs) and feedback of the HMS.

Best Practices in Using an HMS

Using an HMS can improve the quality and efficiency of your healthcare services, as well as the satisfaction and loyalty of your patients and staff. However, to use an HMS effectively, you should follow some best practices that can help you optimize your workflows, processes, and resources. 

Some of the best practices are:

1 . Update and maintain the latest data

For any system, especially for HMS, data is the crux of all operations. Maintaining accurate and updated information is necessary for proactive decision-making about patient care. It will also prevent or minimize errors, inconsistencies, and incompleteness in your data and information. You should also backup your data and information periodically to avoid data loss or corruption.

2. Train users to use the HMS fully and efficiently 

This will help you optimize your workflows, processes, and resources for better results and outcomes. You should also explore and learn the new features and functions that the HMS may offer from time to time. You should also customize and configure the HMS according to your specific needs and preferences.

3. Make the HMS the single source of truth

Inculcate the organizational culture to communicate and coordinate with your staff, patients, vendors, and other stakeholders only through the HMS.You should also provide feedback and suggestions to the HMS vendor or developer to improve the performance and quality of the HMS. This will ensure that the HMS becomes the single source of truth regarding every information pertaining to the hospital.

4. Review the HMS performance from time to time

This will help you identify and resolve any issues or problems with the HMS. It will also help you explore and implement any enhancements or innovations for the HMS. You should also benchmark your performance and outcomes against your goals and objectives, as well as industry standards and best practices.

Hospital Management System – In A Capsule

Every business needs an ERP software to manage its diverse business functions. For a hospital, it takes the form of a HMS. a HMS system helps bring all hospital functions, processes, and data into a single system. It breaks down org silos and helps patients, healthcare providers, doctors, nurses, and the admin team to have a holistic view of their individual pieces of the bigger transaction. 

Implementing a HMS can deliver great benefits to all stakeholders involved, mainly patients, doctors, admin teams, and even external vendors. However, to get the implementation right, you must follow a specific process. We have outlined the broad steps in the previous sections. 

Similarly, to reap maximum ROI out of the HMS investment, you must also invest in user training and follow the recommended best practices. All these would help your hospital deliver superior patient care and also improve its profitability.

Yogesh

As the Head of Growth, Marketing & Sales, Yogesh is a dynamic and results-driven leader with over 10+ years of experience in strategic marketing, sales, and business development.

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hospital management system project methodology

Everything you need to know about healthcare project management (& how to master it)

Trello

Today’s companies in the health and wellness space are plagued by rising costs, staffing issues, and increasingly strict regulation that makes it difficult to keep the lights on—much less thrive. As a result, healthcare teams are under incredible pressure to maximize resources, reduce overhead, and adopt effective project management systems. 

The ability to plan, manage, and successfully execute projects has a direct impact on your org’s reputation, bottom line , and employee morale. But the stakes are even higher for healthcare project management, where projects and initiatives directly impact patient care.

Great healthcare project management doesn’t happen by chance. It requires a deep understanding of what you want to accomplish, a framework for how to execute that vision, and the right tools to guide you through to completion. Here’s how to get started.

What is healthcare project management?

Healthcare project management refers to the organization, planning, and execution of a particular project and its resources. Through project management, healthcare organizations take a project—like building a new hospital wing—from initial inception all the way to completion to achieve desired outcomes. 

The four primary stages of healthcare project management:

Stage 1 – initiation.

During this phase, stakeholders review potential projects and evaluate goals, resources, and expected outcomes to determine which are worth approving—and which should be tabled. This is a critical stage for healthcare organizations, which are often working with limited budgets or resources and need to prioritize projects with the highest potential impact. 

For large hospitals, that might be trying to invest in new facility construction depending on changes in patients served or new treatments or technologies developed. For fitness studios, it might be trying to determine which equipment to order or new staff to hire.

Stage 2 – Planning

Once a project has been approved, it moves into the planning phase. In this stage, the project manager creates a detailed project plan that outlines logistical elements like the schedule, tasks, budget, project contributors, and contributor responsibilities. 

Additional items to consider at this point are potential challenges that may arise and how the success of the project will be measured. The goal of this phase is to obtain all the decisions necessary to move on to the execution phase, such as conducting a facility needs assessment with key hospital administration and staff, or obtaining total costs of new gym equipment.

Stage 3 – Execution

The execution phase is where the rubber meets the road. In this phase, project contributors carry out their designated tasks and work toward completion of the project. It’s vital that teams effectively track, measure, and communicate their progress throughout the entire execution phase.

This allows the project manager to identify roadblocks, reallocate resources, and make adjustments to keep everything on track. For example, ensuring that the hospital wing construction documents are submitted to the proper regulatory channels for building permits or placing orders to gym equipment manufacturers.

Stage 4 – Conclusion

Once the project has been completed, it’s time to wrap everything up. In the conclusion phase, the project manager provides stakeholders with a summary of how everything went, along with any key deliverables and results. This is a great time to reflect on what went well, which areas could be improved for future projects, and how each project contributor performed. 

Applying this stage to the previous hospital construction example mentioned above, this conclusion phase would consist of final inspection and gaining input from patients or staff who use the new facility and equipment daily after opening.

Each project management stage builds off the previous one and is critical to your project’s overall success. By dedicating time to all four stages rather than focusing solely on one or two, healthcare practices can increase the likelihood of a positive project outcome.

Methodologies for healthcare project management

Every healthcare company has projects, but the way they manage them can vary dramatically. Some orgs prefer a more flexible approach to project management, while others require a system that’s more structured. That’s where project management methodologies come in.

A project management methodology is a guiding framework that determines how you, as a practice, plan and execute your projects. Most healthcare companies use one of three methodologies to steer their efforts: the waterfall methodology, the agile methodology, or the hybrid methodology.

Waterfall project management

The waterfall project management methodology is a sequential, linear model in which projects are broken down into smaller, defined phases. Each phase is mapped out in extraordinary detail with tasks, deliverables, and deadlines and must be completed before the next phase can begin. 

With the waterfall method, the entire project is visually laid out from start to finish (often in a Gantt chart like the one featured below). This makes it easy for stakeholders to gauge the full scope of the project, see who’s involved, and get a realistic idea of how long each phase is expected to take.

Screenshot of a waterfall project displayed on a Gantt chart

Use Gantt charts for waterfall project management 

It’s a rigid system, but it works well for teams that have large, complex projects with multiple stakeholders involved—like those who work in public health. 

Agile project management 

The agile project management methodology is an iterative model that’s centered around speed, communication, and adaptability. Teams complete various phases of the project in parallel rather than taking a sequential approach to execution, relying on collaboration and communication to keep everything on track.

Let’s say your practice just started offering a new interventional radiology procedure and needed to add a landing page to your hospital’s website so you can increase awareness. Under an agile approach, your webmaster could start mocking up the page design while a radiologist reviews the final copy instead of having to wait to get started. When that copy does get approved, the page is already designed and ready to launch. 

Agile projects are often laid out in a Kanban-style board , with emphasis placed on task status versus deadline/assignee. Everything that needs to be completed lives in a “To Do” section, and tasks that have been started are denoted as “Doing” or “Done” so everyone knows what’s in progress.

Mockup of a Kanban board that displays a project sprint

Use Kanban boards for agile project management

It’s a much more flexible approach to project management—one that benefits teams at healthcare startups or smaller practices where there’s pressure to knock projects out quickly. 

Hybrid project management

The hybrid project management methodology balances the flexibility and speed of the agile method with the big-picture planning of the waterfall method. 

Let’s say your team wants to upgrade to a new electronic medical records (EMRs) system by the end of Q4. You could incorporate waterfall elements during the initiation and planning phases of the project, creating a detailed roadmap that outlines the steps, deadlines, and resources necessary for completion. This higher-level overview is often necessary to get leadership buy-in and can help keep teams on track when the project gets rolling.

Once the project moves into the execution and conclusion phases, however, you’ll want to take a more agile approach that enables teams to tackle various phases of the project simultaneously.

In this scenario, there’s an outline of what needs to be accomplished, but teams still have the flexibility to adjust timelines, re-prioritize items, and adapt to changes as needed. This more flexible approach can keep projects from getting blocked and help teams meet (or beat) their deadlines. 

The impact of great project management 

Orgs with effective project management processes in place can benefit from improved patient outcomes, better systems, and lower costs.

When done correctly, healthcare project management can help organizations improve a number of areas, including:

  • Internal processes. With a defined project management system in place, you can standardize how teams approach every aspect of a project—from initiation all the way to completion. This ensures consistency and makes it easier to identify (and improve) parts of the process where projects consistently break down. 
  • Organizational planning. To truly excel at project management, an emphasis on planning is required. Project contributors, managers, and stakeholders must train themselves to think with a big picture in mind and get comfortable mapping out a project step by step. That planning mindset carries over into every other aspect of the organization—from scheduling to ordering important medical supplies —and can positively impact the quality of care.
  • Stakeholder relationships. Orgs can strengthen relationships with their board of directors, volunteers, and donors by involving them in the project approval phase, providing regular updates about project status, and communicating wins. With a system in place to track project completion and success, it’s also easy to demonstrate value by quantifying the number of changes your company has made—and their impact.

Healthcare companies without a defined approach to project management may find themselves battling inefficiency, burgeoning costs , and high litigation/regulation risk. 

5 best practices for healthcare project management

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare project management. The way you choose to approach project management can vary based on your organization’s structure, your preferred methodology, the type of projects you manage, and other factors.

With that being said, there are a few simple steps you can take to improve project management within your healthcare practice.

1. Invest in a secure project management tool

Many companies rely on a project management tool to help them organize, track, and manage their projects. For companies in the healthcare industry, it’s not enough to find a project management solution with flashy features. You’ll need a secure tool (like Trello Enterprise ) that enables your teams to manage projects more efficiently and protects their data. 

Here are security features to look for when choosing your healthcare project management tool:

  • SOC2 compliance . This independent auditing procedure evaluates a tool’s ability to manage customer data in five key areas: availability, processing, security, confidentiality, and privacy. In short, it’s a strong indicator of whether or not that project management tool can protect your data. As a general rule of thumb, if it’s not SOC2 compliant, you probably shouldn’t use it. 
  • Login security. According to IBM’s Cost of a Data Breach report, compromised credentials were the top source of data breaches in 2021. It’s essential that whichever tool you select offers features that add an extra layer of security when employees log in, like single sign-on (SSO) and two-step verification (2SV). 
  • User management. On any given day employees can resign, move into a new role within the company, or transition departments. And as these changes occur, you need to be able to quickly adapt employees’ permissions. Trello offers automated user management through Atlassian Access and automatically updates employee permissions based on changes within your employee directory. 
  • File-sharing restrictions. Your project management tool will house all your project files, attachments, and resources—but you may not want everyone to be able to see them. Be sure the tool you select offers file-sharing restrictions so that only need-to-know users can access sensitive project documents. For example, Trello uses authenticated attachments to ensure that no unauthorized users can access files shared on your project cards or board.

2. Pay proper attention to planning

Insufficient planning is a huge contributor to project failure . Before you start working through specific tasks, take the time to create a project charter that defines your project’s goals, resources, key deliverables, and metrics for success. If you’re upgrading the cardio equipment at your fitness center, explain why the project is important, outline who should be involved, and specify any expectations you have regarding deadlines, communication, etc. 

This planning document will be critical in ensuring that the entire team (and your stakeholders) are aligned on the goals and logistics of the project.

Once you’ve finalized your project charter, make sure it’s easily accessible to all the project contributors. If you’re using Trello for project management, you can add the charter directly to the resources list on your project board so team members can refer back to it.

Screenshot of a cardio equipment upgrade project board in Trello, with a project charter document added to the resource section

Attach a project charter to your Resource board for easy access

3. Prioritize your projects

Many healthcare companies have to balance limited resources and staff shortages when managing projects. In order to maximize your team’s efforts, it’s important to differentiate projects that need to be completed ASAP from those that aren’t as pressing. You can do that by assigning priority levels to each project—and encouraging contributors to focus on high-priority projects. 

You can choose to prioritize projects based on deadline, urgency (e.g., a project that’s not time-sensitive but is important to stakeholders), or the perceived impact of the project outcomes. Whichever method you choose, you’ll need to find ways to clearly communicate priority levels to your project team. 

If you opt for a deadline-based approach to project prioritization, Trello’s Timeline view is a great resource. Through the Timeline view, teams can visually track and manage multiple project timelines all in one place. This allows them to see which projects have approaching deadlines, visualize how tasks fit together, identify potential overlap issues, and adjust the tasks they need to prioritize accordingly.

Picture of a several healthcare projects displayed through Trello’s Timeline view

Use Trello’s Timeline view to manage deadlines and prioritize projects

For teams that take a mixed-bag approach to project prioritization, labels make it easy to visually tag individual tasks with priority levels. You can designate project items as “High Priority,” “Medium Priority,” or “Low Priority,” and even create custom labels that note whether each task is “Urgent” or “Not Urgent.” This encourages contributors to focus their efforts on high-priority, high-urgency items over tasks that aren’t as pressing.

Picture of a Trello card being tagged with custom labels to indicate priority level

Use custom labels to indicate task priority and urgency

4. Make it easy to work together across departments

Sometimes projects are confined to individual teams, but more often than not, larger projects within your healthcare facility require contributions from employees in a number of departments. If those teams can’t collaborate with each other, important project information can get siloed within departments and cause delays. 

Lean heavily on your project management tool to simplify the collaboration process and help everyone work together—regardless of department.

Trello enables cross-team collaboration by providing a centralized location where all project resources, updates, and deliverables can be accessed. Employees can easily check task statuses, request feedback from other contributors, and share files between departments.

Screenshot of a Trello card with an advanced checklist, where an employee left project updates for a team member

Trello makes it easy for teams to collaborate on projects

Instead of each team working on their portion of the project as an independent unit, Trello enables them to work together through the same tool. This helps increase visibility and enables collaboration.

5. Remember that communication is critical

Effective communication is key to the success of any project—especially if your team has taken an agile approach to project management. At any given time, project contributors may need to collectively brainstorm solutions to a challenge, share updates with stakeholders, or communicate their needs to other team members. If they can’t, the entire project could break down.

Trello makes it easy for teams to enhance their communication—both internally and with external stakeholders. Employees can tag team members into conversations on various project cards and use the comment section to request resources, ask questions, or provide additional context about a task. 

You can even use Power-Ups (i.e., integrations) to connect your org’s other communication tools (like Slack and email) to Trello. That way, instead of navigating out of the platform to send a project update to stakeholders, you can initiate those conversations directly within Trello

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Hospital Management System: Features, Modules, Functions, Advantages

Updated: April 17, 2024

Published: May 31, 2019

Well-tuned hospital management workflow involves lots of important decisions that should be made in the most efficient and quick way. Nowadays it is hard to implement it without the distinct hospital management system. In this article, we’ll explore what is HMS software, what functions it performs and how it helps the healthcare industry be more effective and patient-centric.

The hospital management system (HMS) is an integrated software that handles different directions of clinic workflows. It manages the smooth healthcare performance along with administrative, medical, legal and financial control. That is a cornerstone for the successful operation of the healthcare facility.

List of the contents:

  • What is a hospital management system
  • Clinic management system advantages
  • Workflow automation
  • Hospital management system features
  • HMS components
  • In conclusion

WHAT IS A HOSPITAL MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

As long as each stage implementation needs to be accurate and explicit, the clinic management system provides certain automation of many vital daily processes. The hospital system software covers the services that unify and simplify the work of healthcare professionals as well as their interactions with patients.

There is always the wide choice of features that can be included in the system. Moreover, the most important thing they are created to streamline various procedures that meet the needs of all the users. The hospital management system feature list is concentrated on providing the smooth experience of patients, staff and hospital authorities. It might seem that their expectations differ, they still are covered by components of the hospital information system. Quality and security still remain the main criteria of the medical industry. It is also known for the constant and rapid changes to improve the efficiency of medical services and satisfaction of the patients.

Hospital management has greatly changed over the last decades. Business expertise, modern technologies, connected devices , mobile apps, and knowledge of healthcare are key elements for the implementation of hospital management system project. The number of healthcare providers has increased and the patients have a wide choice of medical specialists. The interactions between the hospital and the patient can be simplified for the convenience of both sides. Each institution has the opportunity to create the efficient, clear and fast delivering healthcare model.

Depending on the hospital management system software features, it can deal with a lot of tasks. It helps to outline and implement policies, guarantee communication and coordination between employees, automate routine tasks, design the patient-oriented workflows, advertise services, manage human and financial resources and provide the uninterrupted supply chain. The components of a hospital information system can be chosen and combined in the general system that meets the needs and norms of the healthcare industry as well as quality standards. One of the main requirements of the clinic management system is security. All medical records have to be protected and only accessible for the allowed users. The convenient and informative interfaces should correspond to their roles and responsibilities in order to protect the confidential data.

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Since the purpose of the hospital information system is the arrangement of necessary, precise and appropriate data, the hospitals should ensure the system work and can be accessed at any time. The online hospital management system and desktop (on-premise) solutions are possible options of the healthcare providers. This could be a unique system for the certain institution, chain of clinics, state hospitals or even the international medical organizations. It is usually started with the basic version that can be scaled up.

HOSPITAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM ADVANTAGES

The implementation of hospital management system project provides the institution with different advantages that improve the service quality and efficiency. As mentioned above it is created for three groups of users: patients, hospital staff and management, and third-parties like drug suppliers and insurance companies. The interaction between them conveys the general performance. The benefits received by a certain group of users also positively influence the work of the others. Cooperation and communication are the fundamental requirements here.

In order to create the hospital management system feature list, you need to identify your priorities by choosing the benefits that are prior for your case.

Improved processes

Automation is one of the main benefits here. It helps to optimize the user experience. Medical specialists, patients, and hospital authorities can interact online, make the appointments and exchange information.

Digital medical records  

The hospital database includes all the necessary patient data. The disease history, test results, prescribed treatment can be accessed by doctors without much delay in order to make an accurate diagnosis and monitor the patient’s health. It enables lower risks of mistakes.

Staff interaction

It is vital to engage all of your employees for improved coordination and teamwork. They do not need to make special requests and wait for a long time for an answer. Each specialist will be in charge of certain process stage and can share outcomes with colleagues just in one click.

Facility management

Hospitals authorities are able to manage their available resources, analyze staff work, reduce the equipment downtime, optimize the supply chain, etc. Another fact to mention is that hospital staff deal with the digital data instead of endless paperwork.

Financial control and tax planning

The management has the ability to monitor different financial operations including expenses, profits, and losses, paying bills and taxes, in and outpatient billing. The financial awareness helps to analyze business prospects quite clear and move in the right direction.

Market strategy

Due to the high market competitive nature, the medical industry is also open to all the different innovations that enable communication between patients, doctors, suppliers, and marketing services providers.

Insurance claims processing

Integration with health insurance services improves the experience of the patients and brings benefits to the institution. It allows you to be innovative and helps both the patient and hospital to handle many aspects of the insurance process successfully.

Less time consuming

As the services and interactions are improved in all possible ways, everything is being planned with greater precision. It saves the time of all the system users and provides them with up-to-date information.

Patient self-service

Patients have their own system accounts where the list of various actions can be performed. They are able to make online requests or reservation, receive the test results, receive the consultation of the medical specialists and many more.

Better customer experience

Since the clinic management system is patient-oriented, the treatment process can be less stressful. Doctors have more time for the examination and interaction with patients. In addition, all the requested information can be received online.

CLINIC MANAGEMENT AUTOMATION

The hospital management system automates the clinic’s work and optimizes the utilization of resources instead of only the storage and presentation of the information. It balances the occupancy rates and calculates the number of required employees. Automation helps to manage the general process, deals with the different healthcare services and equipment providers on its own, analyzes and sends notifications to the user. The purpose of the hospital information system is managing the employee and patient activities remotely with immediate access for the authorized users. The patient-centric and well-managed company will also ensure a better work environment for their employees.

When the patient wants to have an appointment, he might choose among a few options. Firstly, you can find the data about visiting hours on the medical specialists’ profiles and book a convenient time. Secondly, you simply dial the receptionist who will check the doctors’ schedule for you and set your appointment. In both cases, the doctor gets the information about the next visit whereas the patient will get a reminder via SMS, email or even receive the automated calls.

As for the medical specialists, the healthcare record management system that contains the patient information in one place enables more efficient work of the staff. Automation speeds up the process of patient registration and filling out all the necessary records. The doctors have the ability to check the disease history, test results, as well as add new data to the patient file. The job of the doctor that previously involved too much paperwork can be completely computerized. Doctors spend more time on patients’ treatment rather than documentation. If something is requested in a written form, they are able to print it.

Finally, the clinic authorities receive the automated control of all the interactions in their facility. The hospital system software can generate the analysis of staff work, financial expenses, revenue, set the general priorities of the institution, outline future directions.

HOSPITAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FUNCTIONS

The hospital management system organizes the stable functioning of daily tasks and interactions. This is a special tool to support the smooth operating of the software components that are vital for the clinic administration. The hospital records management software keeps a track of all the operations, stores the users’ data, performs its analysis and generates the reports. The medical institution is given the opportunity to collect its information in one place. It includes the patient and doctors’ records as well as the data concerning financial affairs, supply management, etc. Furthermore, it is only processed, classified and accessible for authorized users. The hospital database management system provides users with data security due to all regulations. Implementation of different functions empowers smooth and clear functionality.

The hospital records management software tracks the number of available doctors and their working hours. This allows to have the accurate schedule of each employee, manage your facility abilities and the supply chain in order to meet all the needs of the patients. It helps to arrange the appointments for both the staff and patients’ convenience.

Any clinic should store medical histories, test results, prescribed treatments, etc. The good hospital database management system will do it for you. All the details are securely stored for the access of the doctor and can be provided to the patients by their requests. They can receive the test results or medical reports by email or the user account. When the written form is required, printing will take only a few minutes for the clinic staff.

Another function is connected with managing finances. The hospital accounting software estimates the patients’ payments. It might remind the bank account where you can check performed operations and the billing status of each customer.

Moreover, the hospital record management system is capable of generating regular reports of the tracked data including healthcare, staff efficiency, finances, inventory , and facility utilization, etc. This greatly helps the clinic authorities in making reasonable policy decisions. Therefore, any of these functions are designed to make the clinic management system easy to use, comprehensive, powerful and reliable.

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COMPONENTS OF HOSPITAL INFORMATION SYSTEM

When the hospital considers applying this approach, it is necessary to learn how to develop a hospital management system. Planning and setting priorities is one of the important stages. It outlines the functions and benefits that the medical institution expects to get at the final point. The qualified developers usually suggest the list of the recommended hospital management system project modules. They will ensure the efficient administration of your medical institution.

Their number might differ depending on the clinic needs, however, it usually includes some basic hospital information system modules.

Patient management

It is used to control patient flow. It can be used to register them, get the data of the patients’ health condition, view the treatment and check the medical history and reports.

Appointment module in hospital management

Appointment module in hospital management arranges the schedule of doctors due to the patients’ application. It helps to organize the availability of medical specialists at any convenient time. Some hospital can even offer remote visits when you need immediate assistance.

The facility management module is responsible for tracking and maintaining the room availability, the occupancy status as well as various kinds of administrative documentation.

Inventory management

Inventory management module controls the amount of clinic inventory. The entire supply chain is automated for the convenience of the staff that can concentrate on the patients’ need firstly.

Staff management

Staff management module provides the human resources administration. It updates the job description of employees, updates the hospital structure, tracks the recruiting records.

Accounting module organizes the financial affairs of both customers and the medical institution. It stores and presents all the patient payment details, hospital financial records on expenses and overall profit.

Insurance services integration  

Insurance module can record patients’ insurance details. It includes the policy number, the insurance company, information about their policies.

Medicine management

Medicine management module contains the list of drugs that usually used for the specific treatment. It keeps records of every patient’ drugs used during their treatment.

Laboratory and tests management

Lab management module shows the test results of the particular patient. The lab data can be viewed by the staff and generated for the patients’ reports. It is usually integrated with other hospital information system modules for the better overall functionality of the system.

Report management part stores the already processed detailed information. This module helps management collect, analyze and view the performance data in a comprehensive format. The business intelligence subsystem helps define problematic aspects and successfully eliminate them to keep the business profitability as well the high customer satisfaction level.  

Helpdesk & support

Helpdesk support module specializes in handling different issues, problems, and requests. It ensures that the operations are maintained properly, the data is valid and reported in accordance.

All mentioned hospital information system modules perform, control and support the general working process. Also, you should not forget about the hospital management system design and functionality. The software developers can usually suggest what modules you should choose for efficient work and meeting all the expectations.

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IN CONCLUSION

Taking into account all the mentioned details, we can make the conclusion that the hospital management system is the inevitable part of the lifecycle of the modern medical institution. It automates numerous daily operations and enables smooth interactions of the users. Developing the hospital system software is a great opportunity to create the distinct, efficient and fast delivering healthcare model. Implementation of hospital management system project helps to store all the kinds of records, provide coordination and user communication, implement policies, improve day-to-day operations, arrange the supply chain, manage financial and human resources, and market hospital services. This beneficial decision covers the needs of the patients, staff and hospital authorities and simplifies their interactions. It has become the usual approach to manage the hospital. Many clinics have already experienced its advantages and continue developing new hospital management system project modules.

Need to improve management in your hospital or plan to innovate healthcare with new software product? The hospital system software is a great solution for any medical institution.  If you have some ideas and need the assistance, you are welcome to contact Existek. We are an outsourcing company with great expertise in software development and always ready to find out the best approaches for your company. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us via the contact form or start the discussion in the website chat widget. Existek will be glad to provide professional consultation and find the solution for you.

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HAMS: An Integrated Hospital Management System to Improve Information Exchange

  • Conference paper
  • First Online: 11 June 2020
  • Cite this conference paper

hospital management system project methodology

  • Francesco Lubrano 17 ,
  • Federico Stirano 17 ,
  • Giuseppe Varavallo 17 ,
  • Fabrizio Bertone 17 &
  • Olivier Terzo 17  

Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 1194))

Included in the following conference series:

  • Conference on Complex, Intelligent, and Software Intensive Systems

8910 Accesses

3 Citations

Effective management of hospitals and health care facilities is based on the knowledge of the available resources (e.g. staff, beds, services). Furthermore, during emergencies, a reliable exchange information system is a crucial factor in providing a timely response. This paper describes the Hospital Availability Management System (HAMS), a software developed in the framework of the EU-funded SAFECARE project. The main goal of HAMS is to provide the current status of a hospital (or health-care facility) to the internal staff, but also to first responders (paramedics, firefighters, civil protection, etc.) in order to manage the flow of patients correctly. Beyond the data coming from the normal operations of a hospital, the HAMS is able to integrate inputs from incident detection systems deployed in the hospital, to automatically update availability data after cyber and/or physical incidents, also taking into account the propagation of impacts among interconnected assets. Finally, HAMS implements the OASIS EDXL-HAVE standard, to allow the exchange of information in a open and interoperable format.

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1 introduction.

During a situation of emergency, it is important for hospitals to be able to communicate with each other and with emergency care providers about their shortage or availability of resources in terms of bed and staff capacity. With this information, first responders are able to manage at their best the flow of patients and this improves the response time and the health service resilience during emergencies.

For example, the emergency related to the spread of the COVID-19 virus in Italy required the activation of the Remote Control Center for Health Rescue (CROSS - Centrale Remota Operazioni Soccorso Sanitario) by the Italian Department of Civil Protection. This remote control centre acts in cooperation with the regional contact points to monitor and manage the available resources for hospitals and healthcare facilities on the whole national territory. Its goal is to give support to the areas where the emergency occurred and, if needed, to get access to resources of nearby areas. The mechanism is based on requests of resources (beds, personnel, etc.) that the CROSS platform aims to satisfy, identifying which other areas can provide the needed resources.

As a consequence, effective management of emergencies and crisis depends on the knowledge of each healthcare facility of the status of its own resources and on timely information availability, reliability and intelligibility. Therefore, having a fast communication of incidents and a subsequent processing of availability is a key point in order to provide relevant information as soon as possible, giving to emergency managers the possibility to take more accurate decisions. Furthermore, it’s mandatory to identify a common protocol/language to exchange data about availability among the different Stakeholders to facilitate the overall management.

The Hospital Availability Management System (HAMS), developed in the framework of the EU-funded SAFECARE project Footnote 1 , has been designed and developed to support hospitals in both aspects. Thus, the role of the HAMS is to manage the availability of hospital assets and provide hospital status and asset availability information in case of emergency. From one side, HAMS is able to provide operators with the current availability of hospital resources through a graphic interface. Thanks to the integration with incident detection systems and impact propagation models, HAMS considers not only health emergency but also incidents (physical or cyber) that can hinder the normal operations of the structure. On the other side, HAMS is able to export data in a format compliant with the EDXL-HAVE standard [ 1 ].

This paper provides a description of the HAMS system, its context and the innovation it brings, also compared to similar existing systems. Section  2 describes which are the current approaches in the definition of system for emergency management in hospitals. Section  3 provides an overall description of a more complex system in which the HAMS is one of the building blocks. Finally, Sect.  4 describes the HAMS system, its architecture and its integration with the other modules developed within the SAFECARE project.

2 Related Works

One of the essential parts of a hospital management system is the management of information about resources availability. A system that handles the hospital status and its resources availability is in charge of tracking the occupancy rates, calculating the number of required employees and estimating the number of available employees and other resources such as departments, bed availability, services, medical equipment, drugs, etc. Such information is of primary importance in emergency situation and different software that handles it should exchange this information through a common language. For this purpose several standards have been developed and this section provide a description of software that implemented the EDXL-HAVE standard.

Analyzing this standard, one of the first software based on it was the SAHANA Disaster Management System (DMS) [ 2 , 3 ]. Sahana DMS system was used in 2010 during the earthquake emergency in Haiti and in particular in the city of Port-au-Prince. This system helped to handle the flow of victims in Haiti, sharing data about hospital availability with emergency managers.

Liapis et al. [ 4 ] described how, within the IMPRESS project, they implemented management system of Hospital Availability, through which hospitals or other health care institutions can exchange information about facilities and resources. The data about the hospital availability are entered by the hospital operators that report the bed, staff and service availability to the crisis center and first responders. In this case, operators usually receive a request from another hospital or emergency call center and answer the request reporting the availability of the hospital.

Health Resources Availability Mapping System (HeRAMS) [ 5 , 6 ] developed by the WHO and Global Health Cluster, is another relevant example. Its purpose is to evaluate the availability of services and resources in the hospitals located in territories in crisis or health emergency. The system is based on surveys carried out in hospitals to collect information about the availability of health resources and services such as staff, beds, medical equipment, drugs. The results of the surveys are reported in an interactive dashboard to visualize the status of hospital resources. Based on the results, the WHO in collaboration with the local health ministries, develops analytical reports to plan future measures to improve the situation. This solution is therefore useful to help governments managing health services during emergency.

The analysis of the main projects in the management of hospital availability shows that the use of a standard in crisis or emergency is essential to exchange information quickly and reliably between different hospital systems.

3 SAFECARE Cyber-Physical Integrated Security System

SAFECARE project is developing an integrated solution for the cyber and physical security of the healthcare sector in general [ 9 ]. As so, the HAMS service is a component plugged in more complex infrastructure, consisting of cyber and physical incident detection systems and a centralised system capable to combine and store incoming data and evaluate potential impacts when security incidents occur (Fig.  1 ).

figure 1

SAFECARE global architecture

Data about hospital assets are statically stored in a database, that in SAFECARE terminology is called Central Database (CDB). Such data includes departments, medical devices, facilities, personnel, etc. Moreover, dynamic information and messages such as fire alarms, physical access control alarms, malware detection and so on, are automatically generated by various sensors and systems and generally directed to human operators, that can validate or reject them. Once incidents are validated by human operators, potential impacts corresponding to that incident are evaluated and simulated. Impacts are a list of assets that may have been involved in the incident and for each asset a corresponding likelihood and severity is estimated. With the information contained in incidents and impacts, the HAMS can evaluate and update the availability and status of each resource. Indeed, the key is to optimize the way the availability of an asset in the system is updated when it changes.

4 Hospital Availability Management System

4.1 relevant data.

When an incident occurs in a healthcare facility, such as hospital, the internal staff must have updated information on the availability status of several elements in order to adequately respond to the incident and safely continue the hospital activities for patients and staff. The required information can be grouped into three main categories: hospital assets (including services), bed capacity and staff availability.

Hospital assets include all the medical devices inside the hospital. Knowing which assets are available allows the hospital staff to understand which kind of patients can be accepted or if they have to be transported in another structure. Beyond medical devices, hospital assets include all the services required for the proper work and management of the hospital. These services are crucial to provide an effective assistance to patients and users and to guarantee their security and safety, even if at first sight, some of them may seem not essential. For example, the IT system is not specifically related to the treatment of a patient. However, it is crucial for the management and recording of its personal data and for protecting them from unauthorized access.

Finally, two essential elements that a hospital management system must handle are the number of available beds and available staff. The number of total and available beds should not be expressed by a total amount for the entire healthcare facility, but for each medical ward in order to provide a clear picture of how many patients, and which of them, can be admitted in the structure. Strictly related to the bed capacity is the assessment of available staff (doctors, nurses, paramedics, etc.) as they are a crucial elements to assist patients. Thus bed and staff availability are related and the availability of a ward or a hospital strictly depends on these two elements. According to this principle, in some open standards like the EDXL-HAVE, they are considered together, and the bed capacity parameter reflects fully staffed and equipped beds.

4.2 HAMS Data Model

As described above, the HAMS deeply relies on the EDXL-HAVE standard to represent data internally and to share them with other systems. This section provides a description of the main data types effectively used by the HAMS, through a detailed description of the standard. EDXL [ 7 ] is a set of standards approved by OASIS to manage the entire emergency life cycle. It was developed to exchange and share information easily between different emergency systems. EDXL-HAVE (HAVE) [ 8 ] is an XML messaging standard developed by OASIS in the context of emergency management. A HAVE schema consists of a root element that uniquely identifies the organization that is responsible for the reporting facilities. Figure  2 shows the HAMS data model based on EDXL-HAVE main data types. Each facility is described through several attributes and a list of sub-elements that allow a complete description of hospital departments, services, and resources.

figure 2

HAMS internal data model

HAVE is the top-level container element for Hospital Availability Exchange (HAVE) message. It has the following attributes:

organizationInformation; it provides basic information about the name and location of the organization for which the status and availability is being reported;

reportingPeriod; it provides information about the period to which the report refers to. If this element is left blank, the assumption is that the file refers to the last 24 h.

HAVE element has also a list of facilities. Each Facility contains the following main attributes:

name of the facility;

kind of facility (e.g. hospital, long term care, senior residence, temporary Clinic);

geoLocation field that provides geo-spatial information about facility location;

status of the facility from the perspective of the person responsible for it;

Facilities can have several sub-elements, such as services, operations and resources. Each Service is represented by a set of attributes:

name of the service;

code that uniquely defines and represents the service;

status of the service;

bedCapacity, an element that reports bed capacity of a service, represented by two attributes:

baselineCount: contains the total amount of beds.

availableCount: contains the number of vacant/available beds;

Systems that are not considered medical assets but that are fundamental for the proper operation of the healthcare facility are represented as Operation elements. Operations are characterized by a name, a kind and a status.

Finally, medical devices and staff are represented by the resource element and staffing element. Through these elements it is possible to represent the status of the resources (medical devices and staff) in terms of offers or needs too.

4.3 HAMS Internal Architecture

The HAMS has been designed as a web application, following the client-server paradigm.

figure 3

HAMS internal architecture

The Fig.  3 describes the internal architecture of the HAMS and the interconnections with other systems. Describing the HAMS architecture, two different parts can be identified:

The back-end part of the HAMS is a python web server that hosts all the logic to manage hospital status and resources availability, and also to elaborate incidents and impacts (defined in the SAFECARE terminology), and interacts with the rest of the SAFECARE systems, through the MQTT client and leveraging on REST APIs. Indeed, HAMS exchanges data communicating through the MQTT protocol, implemented in the Data Exchange Layer in the SAFECARE architecture. The MQTT protocol is based on a star logical topology: a broker is the center and manages all the connections with the clients. The transmitted messages are associated with a topic, and a client is able to receive messages associated with the topics it previously subscribed to. The messages are structured using the JSON format, and specific JSON schema has been defined for each message type. Data Exchange Layer also exposes several REST APIs to allow different modules to retrieve or store data from the Central database. Besides the communication with the Central database, the HAMS itself provides REST APIs to the front-end part and to other applications compliant with the EDXL-HAVE standard. In particular, one REST API is devoted to provide hospital data in EDXL-HAVE format. In this case, the individual facility can provide up-to-date reports via a web service, and an aggregator could poll the data regarding that facility to collect information and provide new insights based on the analysis of aggregated data.

The HAMS front-end is a web interface developed with the JavaScript framework Vue.js. The front-end represents the graphical user interface of the HAMS and it is in charge of providing an easy-to-use interface for hospital administrators and staff that manage the asset availability. Through this interface, it is possible to control the general availability of departments in each hospital as well as the availability of medical devices belonging to each department. Indeed, this interface is composed of three different views: i) a home page, that provide some general information, the overall status and the position in a map of the selected facility. It is useful to have information about position visualised in a map because hospitals may be composed of different buildings, distributed over a region; ii) a dashboard that provides a list of departments, showing for each of them the current status, the availability of beds and staff compared to the total amount (baseline), and the current status of the medical devices that belongs to that department; iii) a reporting page through which users can set manually the actual status of departments or medical devices and store updated values into the central database.

4.4 Integration with SAFECARE System

Taking into account the provisioning of availability data and the possibility of manually reporting information into the platform, the HAMS can be considered as stand-alone software to manage the availability of an hospital, but its operation is fully merged with the SAFECARE system and in particular, is an important phase of the incident lifecycle.

At boot time, HAMS populates its internal data structure with all the relevant information regarding the hospital obtaining the static data from the central database. In SAFECARE project, the Central Database, through the Data Exchange Layer, exports some REST APIs, that can be used by the HAMS module to get information about the various assets of the hospital and the corresponding baseline availability data. Following a similar approach of the HAVE standard, asset availability status is mapped using a two level approach: a Boolean value (yes or no), indicating if the asset is available or not, and a colour code (green, yellow, red) to better detail the availability. If an asset is marked with a “green” status, it is working in normal condition, thus it is fully available; if it is marked with a “yellow” status, the asset is still available, but it has been involved in an incident thus a specific attention must be put in order to avoid that the status will deteriorate; finally, if it is marked with a “red” status, there is a severe/extreme deviation from normal operation, making the asset not available. Furthermore, if an asset is a department or a facility, the static data provided by the central database module include the total number of beds as well as the number of staff people.

When fully operational, the HAMS receives messages from the incident detection modules, through the data exchange layer. This information provides data on the assets involved in an incident, associated with a severity level. Incidents are evaluated and validated by specialized human operators, so they are considered reliable. Based on the asset involved and on the severity of the incident, the internal logic of the HAMS applies several policies in order to automatically decide whether there is the need to update the status of involved assets. For example, if a physical incident reports a loitering and suspicious behaviour of two people in a hall, the incident will be managed but the HAMS will not update any availability. Instead, if a cyber incident reports an attack with high severity to a medical device or an IT system, the HAMS will update the status of these assets.

The updated status and availability are shown to the final user through the graphic interface. At the same time, the HAMS module updates a specific table of the Central Database in order to keep track of the history of availability changes.

After an incident is validated by a human operator, it is forwarded to the HAMS, and the other decision modules present into SAFECARE system. One of these module is the Impact propagation module [ 10 ]. This software, triggered by incident messages, evaluates the incident taking into account the directly involved assets and the severity, and it provides a list of assets that could potentially be impacted, simulating potential cascading effects of that incident. Thus, the output of the impact propagation module is a list of assets with a corresponding likelihood that indicates how likely it is for an asset to be affected or impacted by the incident. Once this process ends, the list of potentially involved assets is also forwarded to the HAMS. Upon these values, the HAMS will compute the final hospital availability after the incident, updating medical devices status as well as bed and staff availability if necessary. Updates of status and resource availability are stored into the Central Database and showed by the HAMS web interface, so that users can visualise updated information. These features, combined with the standardized data model and the possibility to get the hospital status through a specific REST API too, make the HAMS an innovative tool in its application field.

5 Conclusions

This paper describes the Hospital Availability Management Systems, developed as a sub-module of a more complex system that manages cyber and physical security in hospitals, considered critical infrastructures. The need to have updated information about the status and the availability of medical devices, available beds, and medical staff is crucial during emergencies. HAMS can manage this information, allowing authorized users to get data through a web interface or through a REST API that exports data according to the EDXL-HAVE format. It provides such information to other software and management systems, which are able to gather data from different infrastructures and to provide indications to first responders. This can improve the health service resilience and it is useful to reroute the flow of patients in case of incident. Through the integration with the SAFECARE system, HAMS aims to automatically update data about the availability of hospital assets, speeding up this process. Thus, HAMS can be considered as a step forward towards a fully automatic system able to update single asset availability based on incidents.

https://www.safecare-project.eu/ .

O’Donnell, D., Wilkins, B., Brooks, R., Robertson, S.M. (eds.): Emergency Data Exchange Language (EDXL) Hospital AVailability Exchange (HAVE) Version 2.0., 18 March 2019. OASIS Committee Specification 02. HL7 Informative Document: https://docs.oasis-open.org/emergency/edxl-have/v2.0/cs02/edxl-have-v2.0-cs02.html . Latest version: https://docs.oasis-open.org/emergency/edxl-have/v2.0/edxl-have-v2.0.html

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Acknowledgements

This research received funding from the European Union’s H2020 Research and Innovation Action “Secure societies – Protecting freedom and security of Europe and its citizens” challenge, under grant agreement 787002 (project SAFECARE).

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Lubrano, F., Stirano, F., Varavallo, G., Bertone, F., Terzo, O. (2021). HAMS: An Integrated Hospital Management System to Improve Information Exchange. In: Barolli, L., Poniszewska-Maranda, A., Enokido, T. (eds) Complex, Intelligent and Software Intensive Systems. CISIS 2020. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 1194. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-50454-0_32

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hospital management system project methodology

by Kathryn Berger

Project management has emerged as one of the most prominent business skills of our time because its use can help control costs, reduce risk, and improve outcomes. Used across disciplines, project management is the process of systematically planning, organizing, and then executing a pre-determined set of steps in order to maximize resource use and achieve specific objectives. According to a U.S. News and World report , project management is one of the top skill sets sought by employers.

Why? The Project Management Institute (PMI), an organization created in 1969 to promote the discipline of project management, credits the process with helping businesses save time and money, improve ROI, and reduce risk. It also cites many benefits to staff members including improved collaboration and decreased stress.

Project management has emerged as one of the most prominent business skills of our time

As healthcare in the United States continues to evolve under mounting cost and quality pressures, the need for project management becomes ever more apparent. Understanding and applying the foundations of project management can significantly improve outcomes across health care delivery settings.

This article will give an overview of project management, provide some practical tips on how to incorporate its principles into your work, and explore why a more formal approach to project management is needed in health care.

How Does Project Management Work?

Effective project management requires that the people involved in a project contribute through distinct roles, each with their own set of responsibilities:

  • The project manager is responsible for planning, managing, and executing the project by engaging team members.
  • The project sponsor is a senior leader who provides guidance and makes key decisions.
  • The project team consists of anyone who contributes to the execution of the project.
  • A project stakeholder is anyone who is impacted by the project’s outcome or provides resources.

According to many project management guidelines, projects consist of four phases. In each phase, key activities must be accomplished and key deliverables must be produced. Below is a description of each phase along with practical tips you can use to implement project management in your own work.

Phase 1: Initiate the Project

At their onset, projects must be defined and approved. During this phase, background information, market research, and other pertinent data should be reviewed. The project manager should be selected. Project goals should be determined and aligned with those of the organization. If goals do not align, the project will likely not be approved.

Key activity: Do your homework. Talk to colleagues who have undertaken similar efforts and conduct background research. Learn about the cost (in terms of financial and human resources) and amount of time the effort would require.

Key considerations: Think critically about the need driving this project. How will a successful outcome improve your work, organization, and field? Is that outcome worth the effort and cost? Think realistically about the resources the project requires and whether they justify the end result. Consider who would carry out the work at each stage.

Key deliverable: Create a concise but powerful overview of the project’s expected outcomes, costs, and benefits. This should include both a description of and a justification for the project. Present your overview to an organizational leader who has the authority to approve the project.

Phase 2: Plan the Project

Once the project has been approved, the next step is creating a step-by-step plan of how it will be executed. The project plan should contain a schedule detailing all project-related activities, a budget, a list of everyone who will contribute and what they will do, and a description of how progress and results will be measured.

Key activity: Develop the project plan as stated above, including a budget, schedule, list of team members, and progress indicators.

Key considerations: Think carefully about everyone involved in the project, including the project team, any stakeholders, or any other colleagues or leaders who may want to have a say – or provide valuable advice – about the project plan. It’s easy to make changes while in the planning stages but very difficult to make any changes after execution is under way.

Key deliverable: The key deliverable is the project plan. Once it is finalized, it should be presented for approval. Once it’s approved, a kickoff meeting with the project team should be held to review all components.

Phase 3: Execute the Project

The third phase is carrying out the project plan. Measuring progress and monitoring any changes from the plan are important steps in this phase. Peter Drucker, a notable Austrian management expert, famously said, “If you cannot measure it, you cannot manage it.” This statement underscores the importance of measuring one’s progress against pre-determined criteria for success.

Key activities: As you begin to execute the project, be sure to communicate key deadlines and activities with the project team. Keep a close eye on your schedule and budget. Track and communicate your progress and results with the project team and the project sponsor.

Key considerations: When executing your project, one or many tasks or results will inevitably diverge from the project plan. This is normal. The important thing is to adjust future steps to minimize any negative effects. Your project sponsor can provide guidance around how to reallocate resources in order to get your project back on track.

Key deliverables: Keep a detailed list of any delays, failed steps, additional costs, or other unforeseen changes. Make any necessary adjustments to future project steps to ensure that your project stays on time and on budget – and communicate all changes with your team. Continually update the schedule and budget as steps are completed.

Phase 4: Close the Project

At the very end of the project management process, there are several key deliverables: documentation from each step, any products or deliverables the project yielded, reviews for each team member, and lessons learned. An updated budget and an updated timeline should reflect the total cost and number of hours spent as compared to the budgeted amount.

Why We Need Project Management in Healthcare

Healthcare delivery is one of the world’s largest industries, and it is growing and changing rapidly. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation reports ( 1 , 2 ) that there are nearly 5 million practicing physicians and nurses in the nation – and these figures do not include the many other types of healthcare professionals. A report on the future of healthcare co-written by Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute and the National Institutes of Health predicts that 5.6 million new healthcare jobs will be created by 2020.

Much of this growth is driven by the rising number of Americans who have health insurance, or “covered lives.” Since the passing of the Affordable Care Act, the U.S. government reports that the uninsured rate fell to a record-breaking 9.2 percent and experts predict that an additional 34 million Americans will enroll for coverage over the next 10 years. While this shift is generally viewed as favorable, it has drawn more attention to the need for efficiency and effectiveness in how healthcare services are delivered.

Another major issue is cost. Americans spent $3.0 trillion on healthcare in 2014 and spending is expected to grow, according to projections published in the journal Health Affairs . In a 2009 Institute for Healthcare Improvement white paper , Martin et al. stated, “Until recently, the rationale for health care providers to undertake quality improvement initiatives rested largely on ‘doing the right thing.’ Any financial benefit…was an attractive side effect.” Today, this statement couldn’t be farther from the truth as decreasing reimbursements have forced healthcare organizations to explore ways to lower costs.

These issues, coupled with new electronic health records systems, regulations, and technologies have drastically enhanced the need for project management in healthcare. Organizations are taking on projects to incorporate new elements into their workflows, improve processes at every stage of the continuum of care, and enhance their facilities while improving outcomes and decreasing costs. According to the Massachusetts Hospital Association, the benefit of using project management in healthcare is “to be one step ahead of any potential risk” as they complete this vast array of projects.

Additional complexities, such as regulatory limitations and varied stakeholders, increase the need for project management in healthcare. Project managers must be mindful of countless processes and regulations around patient safety, quality, and privacy. All industries have their own rules, but healthcare is notably complex, with the government and private agencies, such as the Joint Commission, watching closely. These increased restrictions place all the more importance on project planning and execution.

The need for project management in health care is becoming ever more apparent

Further, healthcare lacks a simple “buyer” and “seller” relationship. Rather, there are many parties involved. If the product is care, patients are the recipients and doctors and nurses are the providers, however health insurance payers and the government are the buyers. The number of stakeholders increases complexity. Similarly, healthcare project teams may be larger and more diverse due to the inherently cross-functional nature of patient care, requiring a project manager who is flexible and willing to take all views into consideration. Projects in health care may require more approvers or more buy-in; it’s important that all parties be identified in the planning stage to avoid delays in the execution stage.

All in all, more project managers, and project management, are needed in healthcare. In an industry that is changing and growing at an astounding pace, project management can offer structure and discipline. Using this proven methodology will help the field accomplish more in less time, save resources, and foster collaboration.

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health offers Health Care Project Management: The Intersection of Strategy, People, and Process , a four day continuing education program on project management skills for health care settings. To learn more about this opportunity, click here .

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Project Management in Healthcare: Everything You Need to Know

Project Management in Healthcare

Organizations are grappling with escalating costs, staffing challenges, and stringent regulations in today’s healthcare landscape. These factors pose significant obstacles to their sustainability and growth. As a result, healthcare teams are under immense pressure to optimize resources, trim overhead, and embrace effective project management practices. Effective project management in healthcare is not just a matter of chance; it’s a critical necessity in healthcare.

It directly influences an organization’s reputation, financial health, and employee morale. Moreover, in healthcare, the stakes are even higher, as projects and initiatives directly impact patient care.

To excel in healthcare project management, you need a clear understanding of your objectives, a well-defined execution framework, and the right tools to succeed. This blog will show you how to kickstart your journey towards achieving excellence in healthcare project management.

What is Project Management in Healthcare?

Project management in healthcare

Project Management in Healthcare serves as a catalyst for innovation and progress within the industry. With the rapid advancement of medical technologies and treatment modalities, healthcare organizations must remain at the forefront of innovation to provide the best care possible. 

Project management ensures the successful implementation of new medical technologies and fosters an environment of continuous improvement.

It encourages healthcare teams to explore innovative solutions, whether adopting cutting-edge treatments, enhancing patient engagement through digital platforms, or reimagining healthcare delivery models. 

By systematically planning and executing projects, healthcare organizations can seize opportunities to pioneer new methods, improve existing processes, and elevate the standard of care they offer patients.

In this way, Project Management in Healthcare responds to the evolving landscape and actively drives positive change and progress in the industry.

What are the stages in Healthcare Project Management?

The stages of project management represent a systematic approach to executing projects successfully. These stages typically include initiation, planning, execution, and conclusion. Each stage is crucial in guiding projects to completion efficiently and effectively.

stage in healthcare project management

The four key phases of healthcare project management are as follows:

Stage 1 – Initiation

In this initial phase, stakeholders assess potential projects, evaluating their objectives, resources, and expected outcomes. This evaluation determines which projects receive approval and which ones are deferred. This stage is particularly crucial for healthcare organizations, which often operate with limited resources and must prioritize projects with the greatest potential impact. 

For instance, large hospitals might consider new facility construction based on changes in patient demographics or advancements in medical technology, while fitness studios may assess equipment procurement or staffing needs.

Stage 2 – Planning

After a project receives approval, it advances to the planning phase. Here, the project manager develops a comprehensive project plan that outlines key details such as the schedule, tasks, budget, team members, and their responsibilities.

Potential challenges and the criteria for measuring project success are also identified at this stage. The goal is to secure all the necessary approvals and decisions to proceed to the execution phase, which may involve conducting facility assessments with hospital leadership or determining the total costs of gym equipment.

Stage 3 – Execution

The execution phase is where the project’s actual work takes place. Project contributors carry out their assigned tasks and work towards project completion. Effective progress tracking, measurement, and communication are critical during this phase.

This allows the project manager to identify and address obstacles, reallocate resources, and make necessary adjustments to ensure the project stays on course. 

For example, it involves submitting hospital wing construction documents for regulatory permits or placing orders for gym equipment.

Stage 4 – Conclusion

Once the project is finished, the conclusion phase comes into play. Here, the healthcare project manager provides stakeholders with a summary of the project’s performance, highlighting key deliverables and outcomes. It is also an opportunity for reflection on successes, areas for improvement in future projects, and an assessment of each contributor’s performance. 

In the case of hospital construction, this phase includes final inspections and gathering feedback from patients and staff who will use the new facility and equipment.

Each project management stage is interconnected and vital to overall project success. By giving attention to all four stages rather than focusing on just a couple, healthcare organizations can increase the likelihood of achieving favorable project outcomes.

Useful Methodologies for Project Management Healthcare

Several project management methodologies can be useful in healthcare settings, helping organizations plan, execute, and monitor projects effectively. Here are some methodologies commonly employed in healthcare project management:

Waterfall Methodology

The Waterfall approach is a traditional, sequential project management method well-suited for healthcare projects with well-defined requirements. It involves a linear and structured process where each phase must be completed before the next begins. This methodology is often used for projects like implementing an Electronic Health Record (EHR) system.

Agile Methodology

Agile is a flexible and iterative approach that is increasingly popular in healthcare. It is valuable for projects where requirements may evolve or are not fully known upfront, such as software development for healthcare applications. Agile promotes collaboration, adaptability, and regular feedback from end-users.

Also check the role of agile in healthace and medical research and its impact in the domain!

A subset of Agile, Scrum is particularly useful in healthcare IT projects. It organizes work into short, time-boxed iterations and sprints, allowing teams to prioritize and deliver features incrementally. This approach facilitates quick responses to changing requirements and provides transparency into project progress.

Lean Healthcare

Lean principles , derived from manufacturing, focus on eliminating waste and improving efficiency. In healthcare, Lean methodologies can streamline processes, reduce wait times, and enhance the overall patient experience. Lean Six Sigma is a variant of this methodology that combines Lean principles with data-driven analytics to identify and address issues.

PRINCE2 (Projects IN Controlled Environments)

PRINCE2 is a process-driven project management framework emphasizing organization, control, and effective communication . It suits complex healthcare projects requiring strict governance and risk management.

Critical Path Method (CPM)

CPM is a mathematical approach to project management that is useful for healthcare projects with well-defined tasks and dependencies. It helps identify the critical path—the sequence of activities that determines the project’s overall duration. This is beneficial for projects like hospital construction or facility expansion.

Six Sigma methodologies aim to reduce process defects and errors. Healthcare organizations often use Six Sigma to improve patient safety, reduce medical errors, and enhance the quality of care.

Master Project Management mehtodologies with Invesis Learning’s industry aligned top project management courses !

Key Challenges in Healthcare Project Management

Healthcare project management presents a unique set of challenges that require careful consideration and proactive strategies. These challenges often include navigating complex regulatory requirements, managing limited resources effectively, ensuring seamless communication among diverse stakeholders, adapting to rapidly evolving technology and treatment methods, and maintaining a strong focus on patient care and safety throughout the project’s lifecycle . 

Additionally, healthcare project managers must address budget constraints, staff shortages, and the need to keep projects aligned with the organization’s mission and goals. Successfully overcoming these challenges is essential for healthcare organizations to deliver high-quality care, implement crucial initiatives, and drive positive outcomes in the dynamic healthcare landscape.

Now, let us discuss a few of these challenges:

Challenges in Health care Project Management

Escalating Costs

The current landscape sees a record number of insured Americans, intensifying the demand for healthcare services. This surge in demand and continuously increasing costs exert tremendous pressure on the industry to deliver cost-effective yet high-quality care. Striking the delicate balance between efficiency and excellence underscores the critical importance of improved project management.

Stringent Regulatory Environment

The healthcare sector is burdened with many regulations, including the stringent patient privacy laws mandated by HIPAA. The imperative to safeguard sensitive information has led to the introduction of multiple layers of approvals for projects. Often, projects necessitate endorsement from the hospital’s local and national governmental bodies, resulting in heightened project complexity and more rigorous project management prerequisites.

Ever-Evolving Industry Dynamics

Healthcare is predominantly service-driven, heavily reliant on highly skilled professionals whose roles cannot be easily automated. Despite an increasing demand for healthcare services, there remains a need for more healthcare practitioners, negatively affecting productivity. Effective project management is vital to bridge this gap by optimizing processes and resource allocation.

Heightened Risk

Project management’s inherent strength lies in its ability to mitigate risks , a particularly valuable trait in the healthcare industry, which is prone to litigation. Establishing streamlined and efficient processes is the primary way project management reduces or eliminates potential risks.

For example, a hospital undertaking a project to define the optimal pre-surgery process can significantly reduce errors made during surgical procedures.

Diverse Array of Stakeholders

Many of these challenges, ranging from stringent regulations to heightened litigation risks, translate into the involvement of numerous stakeholders. Managing healthcare projects often entails navigating a complex web of diverse interests.

Some projects necessitate approval from various quarters, including hospital boards, healthcare providers, patients, and state and national governing bodies. Effective project management is essential in coordinating these multifaceted interactions and ensuring successful project outcomes.

Benefits of Effective Project Management in Healthcare

When executed effectively, project management becomes an indispensable asset for healthcare providers, facilitating improvements and enhancing operational efficiency across various domains.

Streamlined Processes

Among the most significant advantages of implementing project management in hospital settings is its ability to mitigate the ever-present litigation risks that hover over healthcare organizations. The establishment of meticulously defined, step-by-step processes serves to minimize unfavorable outcomes. 

Consider, for instance, the various tasks a surgical team must undertake before a procedure, encompassing room setup, surgeon hand sterilization, and dosage verification by the anesthesiologist.

In this context, a well-defined process significantly enhances positive patient outcomes by leaving nothing to chance or memory.

Strategic Organizational Planning

Achieving excellence in project management necessitates a pronounced emphasis on meticulous planning. Project contributors, managers, and stakeholders must cultivate a forward-thinking mindset, becoming proficient in methodically charting the course of a project step by step.

This commitment to planning extends its influence throughout the organization, impacting areas such as scheduling and procuring vital medical supplies, ultimately enhancing the quality of care.

Financial Alignment

Project management harmonizes financial resources with project activities, ensuring fiscal accountability and transparency. It acts as a diligent steward, validating the availability of funds at each project stage.

For instance, it offers insights into whether the budget is sufficient to initiate a project and provides a mechanism to recalibrate and reprioritize in the event of unexpected expenditures.

Nurturing Stakeholder Relationships

Organizations can foster robust relationships with their board of directors, volunteers, and donors by involving them in the project approval phase and maintaining regular communication regarding project progress and milestones.

Furthermore, a systematic approach to tracking project completion and assessing success enables the quantification of the impact of organizational improvements, thereby demonstrating value effectively.

Enhanced Communication

Distinguishing project management in healthcare from other industries is the intricate network of individuals involved in patient care, underscoring the critical importance of clear and effective communication. Staff turnover ranks among the foremost causes of errors in healthcare settings. 

For example, a departing physician’s ability to communicate a patient’s current status to the incoming physician significantly influences patient outcomes, highlighting the need for seamless and unambiguous communication practices.

Best Practices for Healthcare Project Management

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare project management. How you approach project management can vary based on your organization’s structure, your preferred methodology, the type of projects you manage, and other factors.

With that being said, there are a few simple steps you can take to improve project management within your healthcare practice. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare project management. How you approach project management can vary based on your organization’s structure, your preferred methodology, the type of projects you manage, and other factors.

With that being said, there are a few simple steps you can take to improve project management within your healthcare practice.

Foster Transparent Communication within the Organization

Establish a standardized and open planning approach that encourages participation from various departments across the organization. Create an environment where team members feel valued and are motivated to voice potential concerns or obstacles.

Prioritize Thorough Planning

Inadequate planning significantly contributes to project failures. Before diving into specific tasks, invest time in crafting a comprehensive project charter. This document should outline the project’s objectives, required resources, key deliverables, and success metrics. 

For example, if you’re upgrading cardio equipment at your fitness center, clarify the project’s significance, define the involved parties, and set expectations regarding deadlines and communication. This charter is vital to ensuring alignment among the entire team and stakeholders concerning project goals and logistics.

Simplify Your Processes

Once you’ve defined your project management processes, streamline their implementation and execution. Utilize tools that facilitate planning for the next steps and monitoring progress, including strategy management software capable of automating various process aspects.

Facilitate Cross-Department Collaboration

Many healthcare facility projects necessitate collaboration among multiple departments. Effective collaboration is paramount; siloed information within departments can lead to project delays. Leverage your project management tools to simplify collaboration, enabling all teams to work seamlessly, regardless of their department.

Document Results for Continuous Improvement 

Document key project aspects, including challenges and their solutions, outcomes, lessons learned, unexpected occurrences, and best practices. This documentation is a valuable resource for enhancing your project management processes and provides an opportunity to celebrate achievements.

Having an effective healthcare project management is not a luxury but a necessity. By implementing the right project management approaches and tools, healthcare organizations can not only save lives but also improve daily processes and outcomes for all healthcare providers. 

Invensis Learning’s PMP certification equips healthcare professionals with the skills needed to navigate the complexities of healthcare projects, ultimately leading to enhanced patient care and streamlined operations. 

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Healthcare Project Management 101: Experts Share Techniques, Examples and Future Outlook

By Kate Eby | February 6, 2020 (updated September 16, 2023)

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This article provides a wide range of details about healthcare project management (PM), along with tips from experts on how to perform it well. You’ll also find details on project management techniques, including Agile and waterfall, and information on a career as a healthcare project manager.

Included on this page, you'll find details on what healthcare project management is , Agile project management in healthcare , why project management is important in healthcare , and information on what it takes to be a healthcare project manager .

What Is Project Management?

Project management is a process of planning, organizing, and overseeing the work of a team to advance a specific organizational project and achieve an organization’s objectives. Project management does not involve the routine day-to-day operations of an organization. 

Instead of focusing on everyday duties, PM zeroes in on work with a defined end point and a specific goal. Project management occurs in a wide range of industries and organizations, including healthcare organizations. You can learn more about project management with this project management guide .

Project Management Guide

Your one-stop shop for everything project management

the 101 guide to project management

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What Is Healthcare Project Management?

Healthcare PM concerns any projects that seek to improve the functioning of a healthcare-related organization. As the industry continues to evolve, there are increasing pressures to save money and be efficient while improving the quality of patient care.

All of that means that hospitals, healthcare systems, and others in the industry are continuously executing projects to improve their operations.

Teresa Knudson

“Now more than ever, healthcare really needs to adopt [good project management principles] because of all the internal and external challenges,” says Teresa Knudson , Director of the Enterprise Portfolio Management Office at the Mayo Clinic and a board member of the nonprofit Project Management Institute (PMI). “You have to know what you’re doing and be better at it.”

Waterfall Project Management in Healthcare

The waterfall methodology is one of the most common methodologies in project management. It organizes the project in a sequential and linear process (flowing like a waterfall) and has a number of phases. A new phase can’t begin until the prior phase has been completed.

The waterfall methodology has often been used in manufacturing and construction. And, healthcare construction projects are often managed through the waterfall project management methodology. For example, a hospital needing to build a new cardiac catheterization laboratory suite will have defined requirements and a timeline commencing at the onset of the project. The hospital may also have built similar projects before. The project lends itself to the waterfall method because there are defined phases that need to be accomplished linearly.

Greg Githens , an executive and leadership coach and the author of How to Think Strategically , also points out that some healthcare projects that may require eventual Food and Drug  Administration (FDA) approval — the creation or development of a medical device, for example — may significantly benefit from the waterfall methodology. That’s because the FDA, along with other government agencies, require quality checks and design checks at various stages of development that are easier to document in waterfall, he says.

“You have to have testing along the way and a lot of documentation to support your testing,” he says. “Waterfall basically means that you move in phases and that you don’t exit a phase until you can check off all the boxes that indicate that you’ve finished all the required work.”

You can learn much more about the waterfall methodology from this guide on the waterfall methodology .

Agile Project Management in Healthcare

Agile project management began in software development. It employs a much more incremental and continually evolving approach than waterfall. It uses a cyclical process that encourages flexibility, experimentation, and adaptability.

The Agile methodology can work better than waterfall for many healthcare projects because healthcare work and processes can have numerous and constantly changing variables. Agile can help healthcare project management teams easily adjust to those changes.

“The iterations [of a process change] in Agile are shorter,” says Githens. “One of the advantages is that you’re able to recognize a mistake earlier and then correct that mistake.”

You can learn more about Agile from this guide on the Agile methodology .

A Hybrid Approach — A Combination of Waterfall and Agile

Healthcare project management teams sometimes use a hybrid approach, employing a combination of waterfall and Agile to manage a project.

In these circumstances, teams may primarily use the Agile methodology, while at the same time incorporate some aspects of waterfall to provide a timeline and a project roadmap to team members and to an organization’s leaders.

Why Is Project Management Important in Healthcare?

Project management has become even more important in healthcare in recent years. In large part, that’s because of safety concerns: a healthcare project done ineffectively can lead to patients’ health problems.

But, a range of other issues are affecting the evolving industry — issues for which project management is increasingly vital. These issues include the following:

  • Decreasing payments from government health programs and private insurance companies have compelled healthcare organizations to find ways to save money.
  • New and complicated systems for electronic health records on patients need continual monitoring and improvement.
  • New technologies also need tracking and improvement.
  • New regulations continue to emerge.
  • There is greater scrutiny from outside groups, including government, health insurance companies, and patients.

The Huge Costs of Healthcare, the Size of the Industry, and Issues with Safety

A range of statistics indicate the enormous size of the healthcare industry and its effect on the overall economy and the life of Americans. These stats also underline the amount of work that healthcare organizations require for project management to continually improve operations in such a huge industry:

  • Americans spent $3.5 trillion dollars on healthcare in 2017, or $10,739 per person. That compares to $3 trillion in 2014 and $2.6 trillion in 2010. For comparison, Americans spent $247 billion on healthcare in 1980.
  • After the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, the rate of people without health insurance had dipped to 9.2 percent by 2015.
  • Nearly five million doctors and nurses work in the U.S.
  • Experts predict that the industry will add another 3.4 million healthcare jobs by 2028.
  • Eighteen of the 30 fastest growing occupations in 2018 were in healthcare.

Meanwhile, the healthcare industry has significant problems with safety and with deaths from medical errors:

  • A 2018 Johns Hopkins study estimated that more than 251,000 people in the U.S. die annually from medical errors.
  • A 2012 report by the National Institutes of Health estimated that 440,000 deaths in the U.S. per year were from medical errors.
  • Some studies have estimated that medical errors affect as many as one in three patients.

Benefits of Healthcare Project Management

Strong project management helps improve healthcare and the healthcare industry in a number of ways. Project management can do the following:

  • Improve the quality of care by improving processes used to provide that care.
  • Improve communication among healthcare staff caring for patients.
  • improve organizational planning.
  • Improve budgeting, as strong project management directly aligns resources with important work.
  • Increase staff productivity.
  • Improve processes that are established to decrease the risk of lawsuits — in large part because improved processes increase the quality of care.
  • Improve relations with stakeholders, including insurance providers, government agencies, patients, and others.

Challenges of Healthcare Project Management

The healthcare industry can present special challenges to good project management. Here are some of those challenges:

  • There are high stakes. Poorly executed projects can bring more serious ramifications, because patients’ health can be at stake. “Patients’ lives are a part of this,” says Githens. “A poorly done project might end up with poor healthcare outcomes.”
  • There are continually rising costs in the industry.
  • There is heavy governmental regulation.
  • Healthcare is a continually evolving industry.
  • There is a high risk of lawsuits.
  • There is a broad array of involved stakeholders, including hospital boards, medical providers, state and national governments, and patients.
  • There is skepticism among some important stakeholders about the importance of project management. Medical providers who are highly accomplished professionals in a particular medical speciality “sometimes see project management as a non-value-added administrative function,” Githens says.

Why Healthcare Project Management Fails

Managing projects in a wide range of industries can be complex, and those projects sometimes fail. But, healthcare project management can be even more complex and may fail even more often. 

In fact, according to the book, Project Management for Healthcare Informatics, one study estimated that as many as 80 percent of healthcare projects fail . 

These failures happen for a range of reasons. Here are some of the most common ones:

  • Lack of Prioritization: Any organization could embark on hundreds of “projects” at any time. But, embarking on too many projects means an organization is not doing any of them well. Overcommitting is not an efficient use of resources, and it’s not effective. “Most organizations have way too many projects, and the projects are therefore under-resourced. [The organizations] are doing a ‘squeaky wheel gets the grease’ prioritization process. They’re trying to do too much and not setting priorities for the organization.”

Greg Kain

  • Poor Definition of Project Requirements: Making mistakes, such as misunderstanding and inaccurately defining project requirements and goals, is an integral part of planning. However, these mistakes during planning can create major problems beyond the planning stage. When team members don’t ask the right questions about the goals of a project, they don’t realize that reaching the stated goal won’t really improve the organization.“ The number one reason for project failure is poor requirements or incomplete and incorrect requirements,” says Githens. A lack of serious analysis means the group “puts a solution in place that’s not the right solution,” he adds.

According to that study (above) cited in Project Management for Healthcare Informatics, here are some additional reasons for project failure in the healthcare industry:

  • The growing complexity of data collection requirements in healthcare organizations
  • Increased regulation
  • Poor communication among a healthcare organization’s leaders, stakeholders, and patients
  • Organizational resistance to change

Examples of Healthcare Project Management

Project management is used in thousands of cases in the healthcare industry. Projects may seek to improve patient care, improve efficiencies or save money, or improve other parts of an organization’s operations. Below are some examples of healthcare project management.

Improving Patient Care and the Patient Experience

Here are some examples of healthcare project management concerning the improvement of patient care and the patient experience.

  • Improving the Patient Experience from Hospital Admission to Discharge: Hospitals are increasingly analyzing the patient experience from the moment a patient arrives at a facility (either as an in-patient or outpatient) to the moment they leave, Githens says.
  • Developing a Template for Approval to Use an Air Medical Helicopter to Land at a Medical Facility: “Project Management for Healthcare,” a white paper written by David Shirley, a project management consultant and college professor, cites a case where an air ambulance service was approving the landing of its helicopters at specific facilities on a case-by-case basis. “Because the requirements were standard — distance from the buildings, size of the landing area, approach procedures, etc. — it was logical to undertake a project to build a template that only needed to be tweaked for a medical facility’s request,” Shirley wrote. “Developing the template reduced the approval times, thus potentially saving lives.”
  • Increasing the Size/Number of “Safe Rooms” in a Psychiatric Facility: A facility determined that it didn’t have adequate areas to care for and monitor agitated psychiatric patients and keep them from self-harm. A project helped design, plan, and build a safe room.
  • Designing an Improved Hospital Gown: A project helped design a hospital gown that was easy and comfortable for patients to wear and that met the needs of doctors who were examining patients.

Improving Operations

Here are some examples of healthcare project management concerning the improvement of operations.

  • Improving Administrative Efficiencies: This includes insurance processing.
  • Improving Efficiency of Temporary Health Worker Payment: A healthcare organization found that most of its invoices from temporary workers were incorrect in some way and routinely needed revision. A project helped design a standard invoice and invoice process that reduced errors.
  • Improving Efficiency of Operating Room Use and Improving Consistency in Operating Room Start Times: A hospital found that it had delayed start times for daily operating room use, often 30 minutes or more after the scheduled start time of 8 a.m. The hospital instituted a project that set up processes to address the various reasons for the delays — including how the organization prepared patients, staffed operating rooms, and kept surgeons apprised of surgery schedules.
  • Maintaining a Hospital Facility: A project addressed how a hospital informed its maintenance department of mechanical breakdowns and how that department responded to those breakdowns.

Other Projects

Here are some other examples of healthcare project management.

  • Electronic Health Records: Hospitals are routinely embarking on projects to adjust and improve the information technology systems that store and allow access to patients’ electronic health records.
  • Sharp Injuries to Hospital Staff — such as Skin Pricks from a Dirty Needle: These incidents are a major issue for hospitals. Such occurrences can and do expose hospital staff to dangerous viruses, including the human immunodeficiency virus and the hepatitis B and C viruses. One hospital embarked on a project to reduce sharp injuries in the hospital’s operating rooms.

Areas in Healthcare Ripe for Good Project Management

Project management is used in a wide range of areas within healthcare organizations. But, there are particular areas where it’s especially helpful. They include the following:

  • Information Technology: This includes managing all data and patient records and is beginning to include artificial intelligence systems.
  • Facilities: This relates especially to construction, renovations, and facility upgrades.
  • Process Improvement Projects: These are often focused on specific processes or procedures in order to cut costs or reduce errors when providing care to patients.

Healthcare Tasks That Project Management Can Help Guide More Efficiently

Project management can help improve processes across broad categories of work in healthcare organizations. Well-executed projects can help improve some of those day-to-day processes. Areas where they can help include the following:

  • Managing Tasks: The work of many health care specialists is dependent on the work of others. Some tasks must be completed before other tasks can begin. Project management can help improve systems and processes to ensure that they are operating as efficiently and effectively as possible.
  • Managing Staff Time: Having the appropriate health care staff available at the right time is essential for providing quality care. Project management can help ensure appropriate scheduling and time management for all staff members.
  • Managing Resources: Project management can ensure that your healthcare organization is effectively and efficiently allocating the resources it needs to do its job.
  • Managing Change: Employees in many industries — including the healthcare industry — resist change. Project management can help communicate and implement change in a way that leads to less resistance from staff.

Tips For Effective Healthcare Project Management

Experts offer a range of tips that can help your organization execute good project management. Top tips include the following:

  • Communicate openly with the entire organization about projects and goals.
  • Set up an appropriate governing structure to oversee the project. That means a structured system of rules and processes that help move the project forward. “The governance model is critical,” says the Mayo Clinic’s Knudson. That should include determining who to assign to important roles in the project. “Who’s the champion? Who’s going to be there day in and day out like a parent — there to solve issues?”
  • Prioritize. Decide which projects are vital and which shouldn’t be projects at all. “Resources are limited, whether human or financial,” write the authors of Project Management for Healthcare Informatics. “And, some organizations are unable to accomplish all the projects they want in a given time frame. The information an organization gathers during [a project’s initiation] phase … helps senior leadership make an educated decision on which projects should continue.”
  • Set up the right team. Ensure that your team includes employees from across the organization who understand the process that the project is trying to improve. “You want to make sure that you have the right team members,” says Knudson. “And often, that means bringing together people who’ve never worked together. [Leaders need to] get everybody working together toward that same common goal. They need to assign the right responsibilities to the right team members.” “I really focus on having that high-performing team,” Knudson says. “And, we all respect one another’s roles.”
  • Create and follow the project charter and scope document. Integrated Project Management Company’s Kain says that when his group is pulled in because a healthcare organization’s project is in distress, “It’s almost always the case that there isn’t a good charter.” Without a good charter, “you lose alignment regarding why you’re doing the project to begin with,” Kain says.
  • Ask the right questions about project requirements and goals. Githens says that at the beginning of a project, the project team members need to ask probing questions about the project’s requirements, such as “What is it trying to accomplish?” and “What does success look like?” “The number one reason for project failures is poor requirements,” Githens says. “Once you realize that, you know you have to be more proactive and ask better questions” at the project’s onset. In order to avoid project failures, make sure to do the following:
  • Streamline the process as much as possible.
  • Expect the unexpected and be willing and able to adapt.
  • Document your results.
  • Understand healthcare regulations and governance and how they impact the process and your project.
  • Create a project management office. Organizations are increasingly creating internal departments, or enlisting an external group, to define and maintain the organization’s project management standards.

Healthcare Project Manager Job Description

A healthcare project manager is responsible for leading and overseeing projects that a healthcare organization is pursuing to improve operations or patient safety. The manager coordinates and directs all project team members working on the project.

What It Takes to Be a Healthcare Project Manager

Being a good healthcare project manager takes some specific skills, including the ability to approach and react to problems.

Here are some basic skills required of project managers:

  • Interpersonal skills to help you work with and inspire a range of organizational employees 
  • Leadership skills
  • Problem-solving skills
  • The ability to be flexible and adjust to changing circumstances

You also need to develop a nuanced understanding of the following:

  • Working in an unusual market, where insurance coverage and other variables make the buyer and seller relationships different than in many markets
  • How a range of healthcare stakeholders will want to be involved in many projects
  • The increased regulation of the healthcare industry

Education that you will or may need includes the following:

  • Undergraduate degree related to health administration, public health administration, nursing, economics, or business administration
  • Advanced degree in similar fields

Knudson, from the Mayo Clinic and the Project Management Institute, says she believes that there are some overall attributes that strong healthcare project managers should have.

“You’ve got to love change,” she says. “You’ve got to love challenges. We’re impacting patients’ lives. We’re helping patients. Healthcare PMs are ultimately serving the patient. I think you need people who are really motivated by that idea.”

She says she likes healthcare project managers “who jump in and figure out how to solve things. People who will jump with me into the deep end of a pool without knowing how deep it is.”

Healthcare Project Management Training

Beyond their undergraduate or graduate degrees, many project managers take part in ongoing training to improve their skills and gain certain certifications in project management.

The Project Management Institute, a nonprofit professional organization of project managers around the world, awards specific certifications in project management. PMI certifications include the following:

  • Project Management Professional (PMP)
  • Program Management Professional (PgMP)
  • Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)

Some healthcare project managers also have certifications in various healthcare disciplines and specialties.

How Much Do Healthcare Project Managers Make?

Some groups have estimated that the average annual salary of a healthcare project manager runs from about $79,000 to $91,000. A 2017 biennial survey conducted in part by the Project Management Institute found that the average salary of healthcare project managers was higher than that — about $112,000. About 33,000 respondents in 37 countries participated in the PMI survey.

The Job Outlook for Healthcare Project Managers

The job outlook for healthcare project managers is very good.

In a 2017 report, the Project Management Institute estimated that an average of 2.2 million new project management roles would need to be filled by employers each year from 2017 through 2027. That growth will be fueled in part by a high number of current employees retiring. While the report covered project managers in all industries, it also indicated that project management needs in healthcare were expected to grow especially fast.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has estimated that employment of medical and health services managers — of which project managers is a part — is expected to increase 18 percent from 2018 to 2028. That’s much faster than the average for all occupations.

Project Management in Public Health

Project management is increasingly used in public health initiatives. These initiatives often need to provide information to the general public and find ways to interact with the general public.

The type of public health work where project management might be relevant includes the following:

  • Vaccination and immunization programs
  • Outreach about telemedicine programs available through healthcare organizations
  • The establishment or adjustment of policies for governmental health programs
  • The creation or adjustment of programs to prevent communicable diseases

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Hospital Information System Methodology

METHODOLOGY

Software Designing and Development

In this section, the software life cycle model used discussed and how the researcher came up and decided what model to develop.

The different phases that the development undergone are also be presented.

Software Life Cycle Model

The Software development model used which is the modified waterfall model that includes many stages such as Requirements analysis, System and Software Design, Implementation and Unit Testing, Integration and System Testing and Operation, and Maintenance was used.

Modified Waterfall Approach of Hospital Information System

Figure 1 . Modified Waterfall Approach of Hospital Information System

The traditional Waterfall Method was first considered. But then Prototype Model was also considered since the system is actually based on the response of the user. Each developer worked on different specific part of the program, one was doing the layout of the forms, one was doing the layout of the reports, one was doing the database and one was doing the codes. There was also a constant communication with the user thus they were able to test and be able to improve and modify the software as it was created. But since it was initially started with the traditional Waterfall method from planning to analysis, and additional requirements was also set by the client as the system develop, the Modified Waterfall Method was decided.

Design Phase

This was the phase where series of designs were created, revised, and finalize, from the simple fonts, buttons, forms, and interfaces. But most importantly, this was the actual system flow was designed, from the Decomposition, Data Flow Diagram and the Entity Relationship Diagram.

Hospital Information System Decomposition Chart

In this phase, the coding was started based from the flow of the system. The program was created to meet the client’s requirements.  System functions needed were ensured to be functional and executable.

This phase discussed the implementation and unit testing of Hospital Information System. This phase also discussed if the recommended functions and suggestions of the respondents and users were met.

Initial Testing Phase

This was the pre-installation of the Hospital Information System. For the evaluation of the developed Hospital Information System, we send a letter and personally set an appointment with the experts for assurance evaluation. The tool used was the McCall’s Software Quality Model, and after the system was evaluated, the tabulation of the Software Evaluation result was an overall mean 4.54, showed that the system was Very Good.

Final Testing Phase

The final testing of the system was conducted after the initial testing was done. In this phase, the researchers send a letter to the intended users, attached was the Part II of the questionnaire which was the User-Acceptance Form where in the intended users were the one who tested the effectiveness of the developed Hospital Information System if the desired functions were met.

Development & testing

  • Software Requirements

The following were the software used for the development and for the implementation of the system:

Operating System:                  Microsoft 7, 8, 10

Software Development:          Visual Basic and MySQL/MS Access

Documentation           :           Microsoft Word 2007 and MS-Excel 2007

Microsoft Windows 7 was the most compatible with the Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0. Microsoft Windows OS was reliable and very portable OS, since it did not require more space of the memory upon loading thus, it run the program very quickly. Considering that MS Visual Basic 6.0 was the chosen programming language for software development primarily because enhanced user interfaces with dockable user forms, auto-anchoring of controls, and improved image support. It also allowed building end-to-end solutions, from data entry forms to complex report outputs. Finally, MS Word was powerful word-processing software used to create, edit and modify the documentation. It is user-friendly and very suited to the development of this documentation.

Hardware Requirements

The following were the specifications as shown below:

  • Processor : Intel Dual Core 2.0Ghz or higher
  • Memory : 1GB DDR2 (Recommended)
  • Disk Storage : 500 GB (Recommended)
  • Drive : CD/DVD-RW 60x or up (Recommended)
  • Video Card : 1GB GeForce VC (Optional)
  • USB Slot : USB Port 2.0 or up (Recommended)

Staff Requirement & Qualification

The Hospital Information System’s transaction needs which were particularly record tracking and Patient’s profiling, admission etc, were suited in the system’s design and uses. The system design and uses suited the need of Hospital Information System particularly on its transaction in which were record tracking, patients profiling, patient’s records, patient’s admission etc. The system was intended for those persons who were directly involved in transaction processing.

The developer had included the module in the package to train the personnel to let them realize and examine the usability of the system. The personnel must be trained for at least two weeks.

Integration and system testing phase

All programs underwent the testing phase so that the errors maybe spotted. The System Requirement was done to ensure the efficiency and reliability of the system.

Expert testing

In this phase, we performed series of testing to check for any possible problems that may encounter during implementation and operation of the software and if the specification has been met. We used the McCall’s Software Quality Model as our measuring tool in the expert testing which was evaluated by three (3) IT Experts, to check the system’s reliability.

User acceptance/final testing

For the final testing, we provided a system evaluation questionnaire for our respondents. The questionnaire was validated by three experts. The system was evaluated by five respondents to check if the system fits their needs. The five respondents were the Medical Record Personnel who were directly involved to the system.

Respondents for the Initial/Final Testing

The respondents of the study was some of the medical staff and encoders or the system.

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

System Deployment

The proposed Hospital Information System will be installed to District Hospital Medical Record Department Office and to the PhilHealth Office residing the said hospital for easy data storage and data retrieving by the personnel.

Here are the lists of requirements during the implementation of the Hospital Information System.

  • Operating system (OS). Windows
  • People Requirements
  • Medical Record Personnel –They are the people who are in charge in record keeping. They must learn how to use the system since they are the ones assigned for encoding and retrieving patients’ data as well as the statistical reports needed.

IMPLEMENTATION RESULT

In the initial testing, we did experts evaluation of the Hospital Information System based on the criteria set forth by the McCall’s Software Quality Model, evaluated by three (3) IT Experts. The overall mean of the evaluation is 4.54 which mean Very Good.

For the Final Testing, the User Acceptance rated an overall mean of 4.16 which means Very Good and proved to be reliable.

Based on these results, the Hospital Information System shows that the system is reliable and fit the needs of the user. With these, the researchers believe that the system can provide a significant help to the user, and will promote effectiveness and efficiency to the hospital.

Credits to the authors of the project.

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IMAGES

  1. Hospital Management System (HMS): Features and Benefits

    hospital management system project methodology

  2. Data Flow Diagram for Hospital Management System

    hospital management system project methodology

  3. Hospital Management System Dataflow Diagram (DFD) FreeProjectz

    hospital management system project methodology

  4. Hospital Management System Project Synopsis

    hospital management system project methodology

  5. Hospital System Data Flow Diagram Template

    hospital management system project methodology

  6. Data Flow Diagram for Hospital Management System

    hospital management system project methodology

VIDEO

  1. Hospital management system Project update

  2. Hospital Management System Part 4

  3. Hospital Management System Java Project #javaprogramming #shorts #javaprojectsforbeginners #hopital

  4. Online hospital management system with source code bangla tutorial

  5. 🔥Hospital Management System Project in C# |Hospital Management system Desktop Application |trickcode

  6. Hospital Management System Project in Java || Hospital Software || Logical Logics

COMMENTS

  1. Hospital Management System Project in Software Development

    In this article, we will make the Hospital Management System software development project, from scratch, for final-year students. We will cover all the steps you must do while developing this project. Table of Content. Step 1- Team Formation Phase: Creating a Dynamic Team. Step 2- Topic Selection.

  2. (PDF) Hospital Management System

    1.2 Abstract. Hospital Management System provides the benefits of stream lined operations, enhanced. administration, control, superior patient care, strict cost control and improved ...

  3. The Complete Guide to Hospital Management System

    Hospital management software must help you keep hospital data safe and secure. You can limit the access to authorized personnel only. Make sure to look for HIPAA Compliant software for PHI security. 3. Improved access to patient data. You can have easy entry to all patient-related data on a system using an HMS.

  4. (PDF) MODERN HOSPITAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

    A hospital is a place that needs more effective and efficient management of information, people, and assets. This paper demonstrates the design and implementation of an autonomous system with mern ...

  5. Methodology for the Development and Deployment of a Hospital Management

    The paper examines the methodology for developing a Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) on Free Open Source Software (FOSS) and identifies the areas of improvement in the design and methodology. In addition to the methodology the paper ... [17], these methodologies are applicable to projects where a diverse community of developers ...

  6. Experiences of implementing hospital management information system

    For this initiative, hospital management information system (HMIS) has to be implemented across 400+ health facilities in the city.,A case study methodology was adopted to study HMIS implementation. Wave 1 of Phase 1 implementation of HMIS is carried out as a pilot project at Film City's Hospital, Mumbai, which "go-live" on 21st June 2018.

  7. Hospital Management System Project Plan Template

    How To Use Hospital Management System Project Plan Template. Managing a hospital project can be complex, but with the Hospital Management System Project Plan Template in ClickUp, you can streamline the process and ensure successful implementation. Follow these steps to effectively use the template: 1. Define project scope and objectives.

  8. Methodology for the Development and Deployment of a Hospital Management

    The methodology for developing a Hospital Management Information System on Free Open Source Software (FOSS) is examined and the areas of improvement in the design and methodology are identified and a more robust application can be delivered. The paper examines the methodology for developing a Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) on Free Open Source Software (FOSS) and identifies the ...

  9. Use of Agile Project Methodology in Health Care IT Implementations: A

    4.2.1 Literature Available on Agile Project Management Methodologies Used for Healthcare IT Implementations Tolf et al. [7] suggested that for agile methods to be adopted in hospitals, project management activities would need to focus on building adaptive capacities instead of being operations based.

  10. (PDF) Use of Agile Project Methodology in Health Care IT

    Use of Agile Project Methodology in. Health Care IT Implementations: A. Scoping Review. Rav GOODISON a1, Elizabeth M. BORYCKIa, Andre W. KUSHNIRUKa. a School of Health Information Science ...

  11. [PDF] Design and Implementation of Hospital Management System Using

    Design and Implementation of Hospital Management System Using Java. O. Olamide, Elegbede Adedayo. Published 2015. Computer Science, Medicine. This research work is on design and construction of Hospital Management System (HMS). The system provides the benefits of streamlined operations, enhanced administration & control, superior patient ...

  12. 10 Essential Modules of a Hospital Management System (HMS)

    Here are 10 Essential Modules of a Hospital Management System (HMS). 1. Patient Registration and Management: Efficient Registration: Streamline patient onboarding processes. Demographic Data: Capture and manage patient demographic information. Insurance Integration: Integrate insurance details for billing and claims.

  13. Hospital Management System: What, Why And How?

    The Essential components that make up a Hospital Management System. In an HMS, each component or module performs specific functions and tasks related to the hospital operations. Some of the common components or modules are: 1. Appointment Management . Every hospital needs a convenient and hassle-free process of providing appointments to ...

  14. Everything you need to know about healthcare project management (& how

    Some orgs prefer a more flexible approach to project management, while others require a system that's more structured. That's where project management methodologies come in. A project management methodology is a guiding framework that determines how you, as a practice, plan and execute your projects. Most healthcare companies use one of ...

  15. Hospital Management System: Features, Modules, Functions ...

    The hospital management system (HMS) is an integrated software that handles different directions of clinic workflows. It manages the smooth healthcare performance along with administrative, medical, legal and financial control. That is a cornerstone for the successful operation of the healthcare facility. List of the contents:

  16. HAMS: An Integrated Hospital Management System to Improve ...

    The Hospital Availability Management System (HAMS), developed in the framework of the EU-funded SAFECARE project 1, has been designed and developed to support hospitals in both aspects. Thus, the role of the HAMS is to manage the availability of hospital assets and provide hospital status and asset availability information in case of emergency.

  17. A Primer on Project Management for Health Care

    The Project Management Institute (PMI), an organization created in 1969 to promote the discipline of project management, credits the process with helping businesses save time and money, improve ROI, and reduce risk. It also cites many benefits to staff members including improved collaboration and decreased stress.

  18. Methodologies for designing healthcare analytics solutions: A

    Methodologies used for healthcare analytics solution design often offer guidance, particularly for analysing problems or data samples so that appropriate solution modelling can be designed for implementing system solutions. 8 However, most healthcare analytics studies use methodologies specifically to meet requirements of coping with data collection, noise minimisation, data classification and ...

  19. Project Management in Healthcare: Overview, Benefits & Best Practices

    The stages of project management represent a systematic approach to executing projects successfully. These stages typically include initiation, planning, execution, and conclusion. Each stage is crucial in guiding projects to completion efficiently and effectively. The four key phases of healthcare project management are as follows:

  20. Tips for Healthcare Project Management

    Project management is a process of planning, organizing, and overseeing the work of a team to advance a specific organizational project and achieve an organization's objectives. Project management does not involve the routine day-to-day operations of an organization. Instead of focusing on everyday duties, PM zeroes in on work with a defined end point and a specific goal.

  21. Hospital Information System Methodology

    The Software development model used which is the modified waterfall model that includes many stages such as Requirements analysis, System and Software Design, Implementation and Unit Testing, Integration and System Testing and Operation, and Maintenance was used. Modified Waterfall Approach of Hospital Information System. Figure 1. Modified ...

  22. Which software process model is used for hospital management system?

    Various software process models can be used for developing hospital management systems. One commonly used model is the iterative or incremental model, which involves breaking the development process into smaller iterations or increments. This allows for continuous feedback, testing, and refinement of the system. Another popular model is the ...

  23. Agile: Its Evolution and Potential Value in Hospitals

    This article reviews the history of Agile, provides a high-level overview of the process, compares Agile to other innovation approaches, and shares how Agile can help reduce clinician burnout. Hospitals and health systems are notoriously complex, bureaucratic, hierarchical organizations driven by a wide variety of stakeholders. They operate in ...