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CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

In today’s modern age where computer has become a way of life, it is evident

that a majority of the country’s institutions still do not adapt the high technology.

Particularly in most medical clinic facilities, daily clinic transactions are still done on

paper. We all know that modern clinics are now operating at great pace striving to

serve as many patients as possible with the best of their abilities. But as the years

rolled by, the number of patients has grown and various medical cases arise that the

manual method of managing patients’ records, prescriptions, billing and appointment

schedule, is no longer practical.

In this study, we hope to develop a web-based application that will minimize all

paper works and manual records keeping, therefore allowing doctors and staff ease in

keeping track of patients, reducing patients’ waiting time and increasing the number of

patients served – a system that is fully automated, user-friendly, time effective and

efficient.

Background of the Study

Now more than ever, people have become more health conscious and are taking

necessary steps to ensure that they have a sound body and mind – that is why

everyday many people come to clinics or health facility for check-ups and treatments. A

medical clinic is primarily devoted to the diagnosis and care of patients. Basically,
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patients spend a substantial amount of time in clinics waiting for services to be delivered

by the doctor or health professional. The degree to which the patients are satisfied with

the care received is relative not only to the doctors’ expertise in their field, but also to

the quality of the clinic management. And we all know that as the number of patients

continually increase, managing a clinic can also become increasingly difficult, especially

if everything is done manually.

Objectives of the Study

General Objective:

The general objective of this study is to design and develop an online clinic

management solution that will serve as proposal to help doctors save time and

resources with the automation of its daily clinic operations.

Specific Objective:

1.) To computerize records keeping of patients;

2.) To allow doctors to retrieve complete patient history instantly;

3.) To automate billing statement and official receipt;

4.) To automate medical prescriptions and medical certificate.

Assumptions

This study is conducted based on the following assumptions:

1.) That the doctors and staff will use the proposed system;
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2.) That the current clinic management is done manually and now requires

automation.

Hypothesis of the Study

The proposed online clinic management system will greatly improve the

efficiency and quality of care in clinical practice. Primarily, this study has the following

hypothesis:

The profiles of the respondents taken are their age, gender, occupation and civil

status. The manual system is very time consuming, inconvenient and strenuous when it

comes to recording, updating, storing, organizing, and retrieving patient’s records in the

cabinet. The proposed online system is the best solution to do away with the old

method of data keeping such as folders and file cabinets, which do not allow easy

retrieval. Not only will records be more accurate, the clinic can also accommodate

more patients than ever before

Statement of the Problem

Specifically, this study aims to answer the following:

1.) What are the profiles of the respondents in terms of:

1.1 Occupation;

1.2 Age;

1.3 Gender;
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1.4 Civil Status?

2.) What are the common problems encountered with the existing manual

system of managing a clinic?

3.) What are the possible solutions to the problems encountered with the

current system?

4.) What is the difference between the manual system and the proposed

system?

Scope and Delimitation

In general, the focus of this study is directed towards the design and

development of an online clinic management system. About five small to medium sized

medical clinics with its doctors, staff and patients are randomly selected within Cebu

area only from December 2007 to January 2008. The study is largely dependent on the

honesty, sincerity and integrity of the respondents.

In this proposed system, records and files are computerized and stored online for

accessibility and portability. However, the proponents limit the online feature of the

system to doctors and staff only. Web-access of the patients is not included. The

system has a secure log-in for doctors and staff. Managing appointments is also

integrated and billing statements and official receipts are automated as well as medical

prescriptions and medical certificates.

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Significance of the Study

Socio-economic significance. In this study, the proposed system will inspire

other students to develop an effective and efficient system.

Technological significance. The proposed system will introduce technology to

the medical clinics that are until now adapting the manual method of clinic management.

The result of this study is beneficial to the following:

Clinic. The proposed system will simplify and automate everyday clinic tasks

and can help maximize time spent with clients thereby providing better service making it

more profitable.

Doctors. The proposed system will make it easier for the doctors to manage the

clinic and convenient when it comes to retrieving patient records.

Doctor’s staff. Doctor’s secretary and staff can benefit a lot from this study, as

they are an integral part of the whole clinic management.

Patients. Patients are the doctor’s principal assets. And the reason why this

study is conducted is to provide a solution to doctors’ need to better serve their patients.

Researchers. The researchers have developed their writing, analysis, and

interpretation skills needed to make a good thesis.

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Future Researchers. This will benefit other researchers who wish to have similar

studies as they can get background information from the result of this study which will

serve as template to modify their research.