What is the hospital information system?
Hospital information system (HIS) is defined as an integrated medical software that focuses on managing all aspects of hospital operations and healthcare data. It is widely used by leading hospitals and healthcare providers around the world. From storing patient data, automating administrative tasks, managing medical inventory to dealing with financial and legal issues, HIS can do it all.
HIS provides an effective and unified platform that helps hospitals save time and costs in management, reduce the burden of paperwork, and minimize risks related to management and data issues.
Benefits of hospital information system
The importance of HIS is undeniable. Here are 3 key advantages:
- Improve patient care: HIS gives healthcare workers quick access and up-to-date data on each patient’s state through digital medical records. From there, they can offer more accurate diagnosis care and minimize prescribing pitfalls.
- Enhance operational performance: A hospital information system can turn your healthcare facility into a paperless workplace. Your staff can focus on treating patients instead of spending endless hours on paperwork and manual processes. Additionally, automating billing and insurance claims can boost accuracy and remove stress among staff.
- Comply with government regulations: HIS provides a central repository for all hospital data to comply with government regulations and healthcare standards.
Modules of hospital information system
Not every HIS is the same. They usually consist of several modules with specific functions. The more modules it has, the larger the system. The key is to determine which module best suits your needs and operation.
Let’s walk through some standard modules of every hospital information system:
1. Core system
Being a Hospital Information management, its underlying core is how the data is being managed and streamlined. The core system works with this by providing a central place to standardize and manage every input data.
Sometimes, it can be upgraded into a sub-system such as Electronic health/ medical record (EHR/EMR). From there, the core system can also support daily administrative tasks such as appointment scheduling, distributing patients, and more.
2. Business/Financial system
This module works with financial issues, insurance claims, healthcare billing, and accounting.
3. Departmental management system
As its name implies, this module contains sub-software that explicitly serves a department. Yet all of them are connected to streamline data and keep information up to date.
For example, laboratory information system (LIS) for coordinating test results and lab research; radiology information system (RIS) or picture archiving and communication system (PACS) for storing and transmitting medical image; and patient tracking system for remote healthcare.
4. Inventory and procurement system (PIMS)
This module tracks the supply chain and usage of medicine, chemicals, and medical equipment. In some cases, this module also oversees pharmacy operations.
5. Human resources management system (HRM)
Some HISs also contains a module for managing staff data and performance, training and research activities, and payroll processing. In another case, a hospital can use an external tool unrelated to the HIS.
Must-have features of HIS
Your hospital information system doesn’t necessarily contain all the above modules. However, to make it truly functionable and useful, you must have these basic features:
Patient management
HIS provides a comprehensive patient management system, including patient information, medical history, diagnosis, medication records, and treatment plans. This helps doctors follow patients’ journeys and provide seamless and effective care.
Appointment scheduling
This feature helps patients schedule appointments simply and quickly in advance. It reduces wait time for patients, as they will be immediately checked once they show up. It gives patients a good start for the next health care steps.
For healthcare facilities, it cuts the check-in line, prevents chaos at the reception, removes stress, and helps administrative staff assign doctors and examination hours more accurately.
Claims billing and financial management
This feature allows healthcare facilities to closely monitor and manage their financial condition. The software integrates automatic payment features and insurance integration, enabling quick and accurate payment transactions and claims.
Pharmacy and inventory management
Hospital information system tracks and manages patients’ medications and usage to prevent medication shortages. In addition, the system monitors and manages medical supplies warehouses and inventory.
Electronic prescriptions
Real-time messaging and alert systems enhance effective communication between hospital staff and departments. Ensure immediate responses and smooth coordination within the team.
Examples & use cases of hospital information system
One of the leading university hospitals in Vietnam, serving 5,000 outpatients a day with 1,700 medical staff, faced a slow operation and disparate system due to a large amount of paperwork.
They want to digitize their healthcare facility to increase patient intake and quality of care. The first step is to make it paperless using HIS.
This is a real-life example of a hospital information system we built for our client. We tailored it to fit Vietnam’s regulatory landscape and our client’s unique operational model.
The system contains an ERM and Inventory management system, allowing our clients to check patients’ records and medicine usage at any time.
We also developed a built-in quality analytic dashboard for doctors and a mobile app for patients to schedule appointments, check test results, and consult with experts online.
Soon after deployment, our client raised patient expectations by 30% and achieved a 300% revenue increase. This simple HIS has fastened their operation and removed their reliance on paperwork. From there, they serve and treat patients better, as doctors and nurses can focus entirely on what matters most.
Which HIS to use?
To use a clinical and hospital information system, you can:
- Purchase an Off-the-shelf software or SaaS subscription
- Build it from scratch
- Use a packaged solution to set up the base, then customize it to make it fitter.
Whatever road you choose, the goal is to identify the main modules and functions that you want to focus on. Here’s some examples of OTS hospital information system and its best-known function.
| Software name | Main features |
|---|---|
| Aarogya | Pharmacy management system |
| eHospital | Patient data management and Performance analytics |
| eVisit | Patient self-services portal and e-prescribing |
| myNapier | Healthcare billing and insurance claims |
| Insta HMS | Outpatient management |
| ProMed | Inpatient management |
| Intelligent Medical | Patient information management, Claim scrubbing |
If you opt for customization, start by writing down your requirements and finding a vendor specializing in developing hospital information systems.
To know which HIS will be most suitable for your facility, here’re some not-to-miss criteria:
Scalability
Healthcare is a highly volatile industry; it requires a HIS that must be able to expand and adapt. Extensibility allows easy addition of functions and modules instead of replacing a completely new system. This gives you flexibility in many cases and saves a large amount of money in investing in IT systems.
Ease of use
Digital transformation aims to simplify business operations, not complicate them. The software integrated into the system must be intuitive, easy to use for everyone, compatible with the existing systems, and simplifying management.
Localization
It is also necessary to consider the localization factor. That means HIS must comply with local management regulations, support local languages and currencies, and have a friendly and easy-to-use UI/UX interface to local users.
Challenges of HIS that you should be aware of
Hospital information system is a great help for the healthcare industry, however, there are several challenges of using HIS that you should be aware of.
Off the shelf dilemmas
Off the shelf software packets have the advantage of being convenient, intuitive, not time-consuming for customization, and often being low cost due to mass production.
However, it is also a major drawback. Each medical facility has a separate functional system, so off-the-shelf software cannot meet all requirements and may not be perfectly aligned and interoperable with existing systems. On top of that, it is almost impossible to scale if there are changes in staff or patient population. Therefore, any small change requires new software, which is extremely expensive.
Solution: Customizing your hospital information system might be the ultimate choice. If you are worried about the high cost and lengthy process, you can opt for a package solution that allows you to customize with add-ins or outsource to a low-cost region such as Vietnam (with the same quality).
By focusing on designing the best-fit solution, the HIS is more flexible and scalable.
Synodus offers both choices!
Data privacy
Customer data is sensitive. When a healthcare facility migrates its system into a digital platform, it also means transferring a large amount of data, and the process might face data leakage.
Solution: Choose partners who prioritize robust security measures, implement encryption, and conduct regular audits to protect patient information and ensure compliance with privacy regulations.
User adoption resistance
Employees and patients who do not accept the application of new technology will cause obstacles in your business operation. Not everyone is familiar with technology. Some software is not easy to use, leaving them to feel that using the software is even more inconvenient and time-consuming.
Solution: Seeking an in user-centric IT company that builds user-friendly applications for all users, including clinicians, administrators, and patients of all ages. It’s also a plus if they offer training programs and 24/7 support to ensure a smooth technology transition.
FAQ on HIS
HIS is available for hospitals and small clinics. More specifically, healthcare staff such as doctors and nurses, administrative personnel, IT staff, hospital managers, and patients can all use HIS for various functions.
HIS focuses more on administrative and operational tasks of a healthcare facility, meanwhile EMR’s main function is storing patient and health data. However, EMR is a part of HIS, as it’s the input for HIS execution.
Yes, you can integrate HIS with other hospital tools, remember to check it first with your vendor.
Wrapping up
Hospital information systems are an essential tool if you want to digitalize your facility. Combining with other sub-systems for departmental use or modern EHR/EMR, HIS can be a reliable force to offer better care for your patients. Follow us to be updated with new knowledge about digital transformation and technology applications in the healthcare industry.
