1.1 Introduction
Hospital Location System is an application that can be easily accessed, which is implemented to provide the routes, directions, traffic update and see other hospital users reviews about the hospitals using Google map. The increasing interest in utilizing Google Maps API to implement mobile mapping services or what is known as Location Based Services (LBS) ranging from simple applications to display just a few points of interest with information windows to sophisticated map. Scholefield developed a web-based map service for tourism of eighteenth and nineteenth century Edinburgh using Google Map API (Scholefield, 2008). Pejic et al. developed an e-Tourism application using Google Map API to present prominent points of tourist destinations (Pejic et al., 2009). Liu and Palen study the use of Google Maps mashups in the crisis management for nine natural disasters such as earthquakes, fires, and so on using near real-time and publicly available data feeds (Liu et al., 2010).
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
Hospital information system (HIS) is an element of health informatics that focuses mainly on the administrational needs of hospitals. In many implementations, a HIS is a comprehensive, integrated information system designed to manage all the aspects of a hospital's operation, such as medical, administrative, financial, and legal issues and the corresponding processing of services. Hospital information system is also known as hospital management software (HMS) or hospital management system (Wikipedia, 2021).
Hospital information systems provide a common source of information about a patient's health history. The system has to keep data in a secure place and controls who can reach the data in certain circumstances. These systems enhance the ability of health care professionals to coordinate care by providing a patient's health information and visit history at the place and time that it is needed. Patient's laboratory test information also includes visual results such as X-ray, which may be reachable by professionals. HIS provide internal and external communication among health care providers. Portable devices such as smartphones and tablet computers may be used at the bedside (Wikipedia, 2021).
One of the most significant features of modern smartphones are Location Based Services (LBS). Location apps on smartphone can be effectively used and recognized because of a special internally equipped chip that supports the Global Positioning System (GPS). Using GPS on our smartphones together with Google map can assist users to easily find nearby bookshops, restaurants, bus-stops, cinema etc. Vast majority of people today utilize mobile phone to explore and navigate easily around cities. Many of these users are using this location applications to find directions, places or other information that are based on the current location. The popularity for this type of smartphone applications (LBS) has led to the development of an application in this field to help hospitals and sick patients. A large portion of this free software do not meet the needs of the users in term of finding hospitals and getting quick routes in case of emergency with the patients. These applications are either for navigation purposes, or to find nearby places or display locations on a map. Furthermore, online map guide applications do not bolster the capacity to allow users add or erase a specified location. This paper presents an automated method to build an online hospital location system interactive navigation map dependent on Google map. This can be done by utilizing a concentrated database MySQL that exist on a server and users applications (in smartphones).
1.3 Statement of Problem
It is estimated that an average human being will fall ill more than three times every year. People are always looking for different hospitals to solve their health challenges and they don’t know the directions and the route to be followed to get to this places. Without knowing the right routes and directions, this may cause ill persons to get to the wrong way. To avoid this situation, this research is to provide an online hospital location system, developed to help users to get the right directions to different health centers.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of the Study
The aim of the research is to provide an online hospital location system, developed to help users to get the right directions to different health centers using Google maps. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows to design and develop an application software that will:
- Provide a system that users can access whenever they need to find a hospital in a new city.
- Reduce death rate in cases of emergency, hospitals can be easily found using the system.
- Find hospital routes and estimated arrival time with the system.
1.5 Significance of Study
This study will be of immense benefit to Medical Practitioners, patients and other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.
1.6 Scope of the Study
The study focuses on the design and implementation of an Online Hospital Location System Using Google Maps in Cotonou Benin. The research is limited on designing a system to assist sick patients and other users to easily find hospitals and other health facilities, and the system will solve the challenges of people going to the wrong hospital, since each hospital on the system will have previous users’ reviews and recommendations.
1.7 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Establishment Policies: Establishment policies posed a serious limitation as most staffs are not ready to release information needed for this project work. There were lots of information needed from the staffs of this institution to enhance the study which took them time to release or they did not release at all for security purposes, hence the scope was reduced.
- Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet).
1.8 Definition of Terms
Hospital: an institution that is built, staffed, and equipped for the diagnosis of disease; for the treatment, both medical and surgical, of the sick and the injured; and for their housing during this process.
Google Map: Google Maps is a web mapping service developed by Google. It offers satellite imagery, aerial photography, street maps, 360° interactive panoramic views of streets, real-time traffic conditions, and route planning for traveling by foot, car, bicycle and air, or public transportation.
