Patient Billing

Software

PATIENT BILLING SOFTWARE

Objective:

This project is aimed at developing a patient billing software system that

is of importance to a hospital. The PBS is a local software system. This
system can be used to maintain the location (bed no.) of each patient
either in the ward or the ICU. Information about the patient and the
charges to be paid is also stored.

Existing System:

• The existing system needs to save patients information in the form

of excel sheets.

• The manual system gives us very less security for saving data;
some data may be lost due to mismanagement.

• Searching of particular room vacancy information is very critical

where it takes lot of time.

• This system is not having the facility of tracking transfers of patients

from the general ward to the ICU and vice versa.

Proposed System:

The development of this new system contains the following activities,

which try to automate the entire process keeping in the view of database
integration approach.

• This system can provide the information about the patient based on
the ward number whether the patient is either in the general ward
or the ICU.

• By using this system we can prepare all bills pending to be paid by a

patient before the patient’s discharge.

• We can keep a track of all beds occupied / free in both the ward and
the ICU by using this system.

• We can keep track of all transfers of patients from the general ward
to the ICU and vice versa.

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• This system is providing the facility of viewing all information about

patients details, their admit time and the amount to be paid based
on the treatment given and the ward selected.

• We can register all the patient details like the amount to be paid /
any balance remaining, the ward number, the bed number, the
registration number, case number etc. as soon as a new patient is
joined in the hospital.

Number of Modules:

The system after careful analysis has been identified to be presented with
the following modules:

1. Administrator

2. Employee (Receptionist)

3. Payment Module

4. Security and authentication

5. Reports

Administrator:

This module is having the facility of adding/deleting the branches details

of the hospital. He maintains all the employee’s details. He also can view
all the details of patients and billing generation regarding the patients. He
maintains the records of doctor’s movement from one branch to another
branch.

Employee:

This module is dealing with the details of all patients details, their admit
time and the amount to be paid based on the treatment given and the
ward selected. We can also view the patient details like amount to be paid
/ any balance remaining, the ward number, the bed number, the
registration number, case number etc. Keep a track of all beds occupied /
free in both the ward and the ICU. Keep a track of all transfers of patients
from the general ward to the ICU and vice versa.

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Payment Module :

This module is dealing with the patient bill generation as well as payment
through the credit card or cash.

Security and Authentication:

1. Login as Receptionist or administrator

2. Change password

3. Forgot Password

Reports:

In this Module, Different actors can generate the different types of

Reports according to their access.

Software Requirements :

Operating System : Windows XP/2003 or Linux

User Interface : HTML, CSS
Client-side Scripting : JavaScript
Programming Language : Java
Web Applications : JDBC, Servlets, JSP
IDE/Workbench : My Eclipse 6.0
Database : Oracle 10g
Server Deployment : Tomcat 5.x
Frame Work : Struts 1.x

Hardware Requirements:

Processor : Pentium IV
Hard Disk : 40GB
RAM : 512MB or more

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SDLC METHDOLOGIES

This document play a vital role in the development of life cycle

(SDLC) as it describes the complete requirement of the system. It
means for use by developers and will be the basic during testing
phase. Any changes made to the requirements in the future will have
to go through formal change approval process.

SPIRAL MODEL was defined by Barry Boehm in his 1988 article,

“A spiral Model of Software Development and Enhancement. This
model was not the first model to discuss iterative development, but it
was the first model to explain why the iteration models.

As originally envisioned, the iterations were typically 6 months to

2 years long. Each phase starts with a design goal and ends with a
client reviewing the progress thus far. Analysis and engineering
efforts are applied at each phase of the project, with an eye toward the
end goal of the project.

The steps for Spiral Model can be generalized as follows:

• The new system requirements are defined in as much details as

possible. This usually involves interviewing a number of users
representing all the external or internal users and other aspects
of the existing system.

• A preliminary design is created for the new system.

• A first prototype of the new system is constructed from the

preliminary design. This is usually a scaled-down system, and
represents an approximation of the characteristics of the final
product.

• A second prototype is evolved by a fourfold procedure:

1. Evaluating the first prototype in terms of its strengths,

weakness, and risks.

2. Defining the requirements of the second prototype.

3. Planning an designing the second prototype.

4. Constructing and testing the second prototype.

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• At the customer option, the entire project can be aborted if the

risk is deemed too great. Risk factors might involved
development cost overruns, operating-cost miscalculation, or any
other factor that could, in the customer’s judgment, result in a
less-than-satisfactory final product.

• The existing prototype is evaluated in the same manner as was

the previous prototype, and if necessary, another prototype is
developed from it according to the fourfold procedure outlined
above.

• The preceding steps are iterated until the customer is satisfied

that the refined prototype represents the final product desired.

• The final system is constructed, based on the refined prototype.

• The final system is thoroughly evaluated and tested. Routine

maintenance is carried on a continuing basis to prevent large
scale failures and to minimize down time.

The following diagram shows how a spiral model acts like:

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Fig 1.0-Spiral Model

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ADVANTAGES:

• Estimates(i.e. budget, schedule etc .) become more relistic as

work progresses, because important issues discoved earlier.

• It is more able to cope with the changes that are software

development generally entails.

• Software engineers can get their hands in and start woring on

the core of a project earlier.

INPUT DESIGN

Input design is a part of overall system design. The main objective during
the input design as given below:

• To produce cost-effective method of input

• To achieve the highest possible level of accuracy.

• To ensure that the input is acceptable and understood by the user.

Input States:

The main input stages can be listed as below:

• Data recording

• Data transcription

• Data conversion

• Data verification

• Data control

• Data transmission

• Data validation

• Data correction

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Input Types:

It is necessary to determine the various types of input. Inputs can be

categorized as follows:

• External Inputs which are prime inputs for the system.

• Internal Inputs, which are user communications with the

systems.

• Operational, which are computer department’s

communications to the system?

• Interactive, which are inputs entered during a dialogue.

Input Media:

At this stage choice has to be made about the input media. To conclude
about the input media consideration has to be given to:

• Type of Input

• Flexibility of Format

• Speed

• Accuracy

• Verification methods

• Rejection rates

• Ease of correction

• Storage and handling requirements

• Security

• Easy to use

• Portability

Keeping in view the above description of the input types and input media,
it can be said that most of the inputs are of the form of internal and

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interactive. As input data is to be directly keyed in by the user, the

keyboard can be considered to be the most suitable input device.

OUTPUT DESIGN:

Outputs from computer systems are required primarily to communicate

the results of processing to users. They are also used to provide a
permanent copy of the results for later consultation. The various types of
outputs in general are:

• External Outputs, whose destination is outside the organization,.

• Internal Outputs whose destination is within organization and they
are the
 User’s main interface with the computer.
• Operational outputs whose use is purely within the computer
department.
• Interface outputs, which involve the user in communicating directly
with User Interface.
Output Definition:
The outputs should be defined in terms of the following points:
• Type of the output
• Content of the output
• Format of the output
• Location of the output
• Frequency of the output
• Volume of the output
• Sequence of the output

It is not always desirable to print or display data as it is held on a

computer. It should be decided as which form of the output is the most
suitable.

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For Example

• Will decimal points need to be inserted

• Should leading zeros be suppressed.

Output Media:
In the next stage it is to be decided that which medium is the most
appropriate for the output. The main considerations when deciding about
the output media are:

• The suitability for the device to the particular application.

• The need for a hard copy.
• The response time required.
• The location of the users
• The software and hardware available.

Keeping in view the above description the project is to have outputs

mainly coming under the category of internal outputs. The main outputs
desired according to the requirement specification are: The outputs
were needed to be generated as a hot copy and as well as queries to be
viewed on the screen. Keeping in view these outputs, the format for the
output is taken from the outputs, which are currently being obtained after
manual processing. The standard printer is to be used as output media
for hard copies.

APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT:

N-Tier Applications:

N-Tier Applications can easily implement the concepts of Distributed

Application Design and Architecture. The N-Tier Applications provide
strategic benefits to Enterprise Solutions. While 2-tier, client-server can
help us create quick and easy solutions and may be used for Rapid

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Prototyping, they can easily become a maintenance and security night

mare

The N-tier Applications provide specific advantages that are vital to the
business continuity of the enterprise. Typical features of a real life n-tier
may include the following:

• Security

• Availability and Scalability

• Manageability

• Easy Maintenance

• Data Abstraction

The above mentioned points are some of the key design goals of a
successful n-tier application that intends to provide a good Business
Solution.

Definition:

Simply stated, an n-tier application helps us distribute the overall

functionality into various tiers or layers:

• Presentation Layer

• Business Rules Layer

• Data Access Layer

• Database/Data Store

Each layer can be developed independently of the other provided that it

adheres to the standards and communicates with the other layers as per
the specifications.

This is the one of the biggest advantages of the n-tier application. Each
layer can potentially treat the other layer as a ‘Block-Box’.

In other words, each layer does not care how other layer processes the
data as long as it sends the right data in a correct format.

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Fig 1.1-N-Tier Architecture

1. The Presentation Layer:

Also called as the client layer comprises of components that are

dedicated to presenting the data to the user. For example:
Windows/Web Forms and buttons, edit boxes, Text boxes, labels,
grids, etc.

2. The Business Rules Layer:

This layer encapsulates the Business rules or the business logic of

the encapsulations. To have a separate layer for business logic is of
a great advantage. This is because any changes in Business Rules
can be easily handled in this layer. As long as the interface between
the layers remains the same, any changes to the
functionality/processing logic in this layer can be made without
impacting the others. A lot of client-server apps failed to implement
successfully as changing the business logic was a painful process.

3. The Data Access Layer:

This layer comprises of components that help in accessing the

Database. If used in the right way, this layer provides a level of
abstraction for the database structures. Simply put changes made
to the database, tables, etc do not affect the rest of the application

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because of the Data Access layer. The different application layers

send the data requests to this layer and receive the response from
this layer.

4. The Database Layer:

This layer comprises of the Database Components such as DB Files,

Tables, Views, etc. The Actual database could be created using SQL
Server, Oracle, Flat files, etc.
In an n-tier application, the entire application can be implemented
in such a way that it is independent of the actual Database. For
instance, you could change the Database Location with minimal
changes to Data Access Layer. The rest of the Application should
remain unaffected

PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS:

Performance is measured in terms of the output provided by the

application. Requirement specification plays an important part in the
analysis of a system. Only when the requirement specifications are
properly given, it is possible to design a system, which will fit into
required environment. It rests largely in the part of the users of the
existing system to give the requirement specifications because they are
the people who finally use the system. This is because the requirements
have to be known during the initial stages so that the system can be
designed according to those requirements. It is very difficult to change
the system once it has been designed and on the other hand designing a
system, which does not cater to the requirements of the user, is of no
use.

The requirement specification for any system can be broadly stated

as given below:

• The system should be able to interface with the existing system

• The system should be accurate

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• The system should be better than the existing system

The existing system is completely dependent on the user to perform all
the duties.

FEASIBILITY REPORT:

Preliminary investigation examine project feasibility, the likelihood

the system will be useful to the organization. The main objective of the
feasibility study is to test the Technical, Operational and Economical
feasibility for adding new modules and debugging old running system. All
system is feasible if they are unlimited resources and infinite time. There
are aspects in the feasibility study portion of the preliminary investigation:

• Technical Feasibility
• Operation Feasibility
• Economical Feasibility

Technical Feasibility

The technical issue usually raised during the feasibility stage of the
investigation includes the following:

• Does the necessary technology exist to do what is suggested?

• Do the proposed equipments have the technical capacity to hold the
data required to use the new system?
• Will the proposed system provide adequate response to inquiries,
regardless of the number or location of users?
• Can the system be upgraded if developed?
• Are there technical guarantees of accuracy, reliability, ease of access
and data security?

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Earlier no system existed to cater to the needs of ‘Secure Infrastructure

Implementation System’. The current system developed is technically
feasible. It is a web based user interface for audit workflow at NIC-CSD.
Thus it provides an easy access to the users. The database’s purpose is to
create, establish and maintain a workflow among various entities in order
to facilitate all concerned users in their various capacities or roles.
Permission to the users would be granted based on the roles specified.
Therefore, it provides the technical guarantee of accuracy, reliability and
security. The software and hard requirements for the development of this
project are not many and are already available in-house at NIC or are
available as free as open source. The work for the project is done with the
current equipment and existing software technology. Necessary bandwidth
exists for providing a fast feedback to the users irrespective of the
number of users using the system.

Operational Feasibility

Proposed projects are beneficial only if they can be turned out into
information system. That will meet the organization’s operating
requirements. Operational feasibility aspects of the project are to be taken
as an important part of the project implementation. Some of the
important issues raised are to test the operational feasibility of a project
includes the following: -

• Is there sufficient support for the management from the users?

• Will the system be used and work properly if it is being developed
and implemented?
• Will there be any resistance from the user that will undermine the
possible application benefits?
This system is targeted to be in accordance with the above-mentioned
issues. Beforehand, the management issues and user requirements have

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been taken into consideration. So there is no question of resistance from

the users that can undermine the possible application benefits.

The well-planned design would ensure the optimal utilization of the

computer resources and would help in the improvement of performance
status.

Economic Feasibility

A system can be developed technically and that will be used if installed

must still be a good investment for the organization. In the economical
feasibility, the development cost in creating the system is evaluated
against the ultimate benefit derived from the new systems. Financial
benefits must equal or exceed the costs. The system is economically
feasible. It does not require any addition hardware or software. Since the
interface for this system is developed using the existing resources and
technologies available at NIC, There is nominal expenditure and
economical feasibility for certain.

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