Technology Generator

National Telehealth Center, University of the Philippines Manila
Project leader: Mr. Arturo M. Ongkeko Jr.

The Problem

With the volume of health information typically collected in a government health center, it has always been a challenge for the health personnel to consolidate data into a cohesive and relevant report. Patient’s information and other health-related data are collected manually using paper-based methods which are often prone to error, destruction, and alteration. Some medication errors happen due to poor handwriting, ambiguous abbreviations, and disorganized keeping of records.

Reporting health data through paper records also consumes more time which causes significant delays and reporting of inaccurate information. This may prevent decision makers from fully understanding the health status of their communities. As a result, there is also a gap in developing well-planned strategies that will combat the country’s health problems and reduce inequity in healthcare access.

The Solution

The Community Health Information Tracking System (CHITS), one of the six Philhealth-certified electronic medical record (EMR) systems being used in Rural Health Unit (RHU) level, reduces patient’s waiting time and improves monitoring of patient care through efficient data encoding and records retrieval. The technology aims to contribute to effective and efficient delivery of health services through appropriate information and communication strategy, and to aid in health decision-making at the local level. By utilizing CHITS, a patient’s records can be searched only a few seconds upon admission, while laboratory requests, results and reports can be generated automatically.

To support the efforts in digitizing health records, the entire system is designed to follow the workflow of primary healthcare facilities including the paper-based documentation process. This setup will make the process easier for health workers or users to learn and adopt the system with minimal supervision needed.

CHITS is one of the two EMRs that can seamlessly connect and interoperate with the RxBox, the PCHRD-supported biomedical device capable of measuring a patient’s temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen saturation, uterine contractions, and electrocardiogram readings. It is also proven to be interoperable using an international health IT standard called Health Level 7-Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (HL7 FHIR) which is used for data exchange among various healthcare providers. Interoperability with HL7 FHIR ensures that reports generated through CHITS will remain consistent with other systems, even those from other healthcare organizations. Currently, CHITS creates a separate module for the collection, processing, and analysis of clinical and epidemiological data of patients with rare diseases, such as X-linked Dystonia Parkinsonism or XDP. Equipped with this module, CHITS can generate detailed analysis of data for patients with XDP. The EMR module for XDP Care will be piloted in a healthcare facility in Capiz, this year. As CHITS is capable of immediate and direct transmission of electronic reports to the Department of Health (DOH) and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), reimbursements can be processed faster.

Technology Development Stage

CHITS already obtained copyright protection. UP Manila also applied for a trademark, which is currently under review. Through the project, selected UP faculty researchers and staff formed an SEC-registered startup company, the Pivotal Peak Digital Health Solutions, Inc. A licensing agreement is currently being finalized with UP Manila.

To date, CHITS is being used in 35 Rural Health Units (RHUs) nationwide, 33 public health centers in Taguig City, 12 in Pasay City, and 91 in Quezon City.

The project team is currently seeking initial capital infusion from angel investors to cover more health facilities. Investments from venture capitalists would allow them to expand their portfolio, while training partners, technical support and deployment would allow them to expand their market reach.

Contact Person

ARTURO M. ONGKEKO, JR.
University Researcher/CHITS Program Manager
University of the Philippines Manila
Email: amongkeko@up.edu.ph
Website: http://www.telehealth.ph