Background of eHMIS
The eHMIS Project began as a research project in Tororo hospital in November 2003. Initiated by Simon Ndira as part of a docatoral program under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Wetter of the Institute of Biometry and Medical Informatics, Heidelberg University, Germany.
With generous support from EPOS Health Consultants and The MIFUMI Project, the project went live in June 2005. However, the application that was launched then was in a pilot phase as part of a research project. The research project resulted in a publication with the Methods of Information in Medicine.
Many individuals and students supported the first phase of eHMIS. These include Dr. Michael Niechzial of EPOS Health Consultants; Atim Dina and Owor Robert who support with field research; Dr. Joseph Ojwang of Tororo District Hospital then; the students in Germany who supported with application development (Simon Niechzial, Harold Mugeni, Julian Moritz, Jesse Masiga). Kerstin Daniela Rosenberger who supported with the integration of quality assurance components as part of her Masters Program; Michael Okongo who rolled out the IT technical infrastructure; and all the administrators, staff and records clerks of Tororo District Hospital, particularly Dr. John Obonyo, Mr. Andrew Oboke and Mr. Richard Male together with all nurses of the MCH (Mother and Child Health) Department.
eHMIS - Standards
The following standards and guidelines are being used for designing the eHMIS application:
- The Health Management Information System of Uganda, Ministry of Health Uganda, June 2005:
- The HL7 EHR DSTU (Health Level 7, Electronic Health Records, Draft Standard for Trial Use, July 2004
- The HL7 EHR System Functional Module: A major development towards consensus on Electronic Health Records Fuctionality.
- The Reproductive Health Indicators of World Health Organization.
Background:
Because the design of the eHMIS application started in Uganda, the HMIS of Uganda is being used as the basis for its design within the context of routine reporting.
Way forward:
After the first phase of eHMIS, the team decided to embark on the development of a new eHMIS that will comply to standards like HL7 while retaining requirements of the HMIS (Health Management Information System of Uganda). More parties are coming on board to support the further development of eHMIS. The eHMIS Foundation received generous funding from the National Library of Medicine, US to extend the IT Infrastructure of Tororo District Hospital encompassing all wards and patient encounter points. The infrastructure has been successfully implemented and training is under way, as we now prepare to commission the new eHMIS that should eventually cover all processes in the hospital.
eHMIS in use in the Maternity ward.
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Features
We are putting this together. We are considering using the HL7 EHR standard to substantiate present / missing features.
Architecture
The eHMIS application uses a client-server architecture designed on the LAMP (Linux, Apache, PHP, MySQL) plattform to allow for management of patient information from encounter to discharge, with an uplink to a comprehensive reporting module
eHMIS - a free open source application specifically designed to save lives in developing countries through improved health information management and routine reporting. Click here to test the application online.
Mission
Develop and deploy eHMIS, a free open source application customized to address health information management needs in developing countries.
Vision
Lives in developing countries saved through the use of eHMIS in hospitals to improve on the quality of health information management.