About Bahmni

Bahmni is a comprehensive, easy-to-use, and fully open-source Hospital Information System (HIS) and Electronic Medical Record (EMR) system that has been in active development since November 2012. Tailored for hospitals in low-resource environments, Bahmni empowers healthcare providers to enhance patient care, improve operational efficiency, and address public health challenges. It is widely adopted across the globe, with over 500 hospitals and clinics in more than 50 countries utilizing Bahmni to manage patient information, clinical workflows, billing, and more.

Recognized in 2021 as a Digital Public Good (DPG) by the UN's Digital Public Goods Alliance (DPGA), Bahmni leverages a diverse ecosystem of open-source technologies to offer a scalable, robust, and adaptable platform for healthcare management. It supports both on-premise deployments and cloud-based solutions, making it suitable for a wide range of healthcare facilities, from small clinics to large hospitals.

Key Features of Bahmni

Bahmni is designed to be:

• Robust: A resilient EMR and hospital management system built on reliable open-source components.
• Scalable: Successfully deployed in a variety of environments, from low-resource rural settings to advanced healthcare institutions across Africa, Asia, and beyond.
• Elastic: Supports cloud and on-premise deployments, allowing healthcare facilities to scale according to their needs.
• Futuristic: Incorporates modern features like teleconsultation, data privacy integration (such as DEPA Act compliance), and NDHM integration for seamless interoperability.
• Mobile-Ready: Optimized for use across various devices, including tablets and laptops.

An Integrated Solution for Healthcare Management

Bahmni offers an integrated platform that covers every aspect of healthcare management. From patient registration to billing and clinical care, Bahmni's modular design allows healthcare providers to adapt the system to meet their unique workflows and operational needs.

1. Patient Registration

Bahmni streamlines the process of patient registration by enabling healthcare facilities to capture and store detailed patient demographic information. Key functionalities include:

• Patient ID generation
• Photo capture
• Custom patient cards
• Registration fees and retrospective data entry
• Custom attributes and secondary IDs
• Provider/department specific queues
• Integration with appointment modules and program enrollment systems

2. Clinical Management

Bahmni excels in clinical documentation and workflow management, providing features such as:

• Clinical forms tailored for various specialties (including form designers)
• Coded concepts for medical observations, diagnoses, and chief complaints
• Integration of lab and radiology orders
• Drug prescriptions, order sets, and pharmacy management
• Patient dashboard with widgets to track visits, encounters, and visit history
• Trends, charts, graphs, and teleconsultation features
• A library of open-source forms, and operation theatre scheduling

3. In-Patient Department (IPD)

For hospitals managing in-patient services, Bahmni provides robust IPD capabilities:

• Admission, discharge, and transfer management
• Ward management and customizable bed layouts
• An in-patient dashboard designed to optimize patient care and tracking

4. Laboratory (OpenELIS Integration)

Bahmni integrates seamlessly with OpenELIS, a laboratory information management system, providing end-to-end lab workflow support:

• Test orders, sample collection, and result entry
• Auto-syncing of results with clinical modules
• Lab test report generation, workflow approvals, and workload dashboards

5. Imaging (X-Ray/DICOM Support)

Bahmni offers PACS integration for managing diagnostic imaging through OVIYAM2, supporting DICOM images from x-ray machines, providing a smooth imaging workflow.

6. Stock Management (Odoo Integration)

Bahmni integrates with Odoo, an open-source ERP system, for stock and inventory management:

• Hierarchical modeling of warehouses and stocking points
• Management of products, stock movements, and vendor/supplier relationships
• Procurement tracking with FEFO (first-expire-first-out) dispensing
• Comprehensive reports on sales, stock movements, inventory status, and finances

7. Billing & Accounts (Odoo)

Bahmni’s integration with Odoo also supports hospital billing and financial management:

• Automated bill generation based on clinical orders
• Application of discounts, taxes, and credits
• Comprehensive accounting reports for better financial management

Bahmni Flavors: Standard vs. Lite

Bahmni is available in two distinct variants, catering to the needs of different healthcare setups:

1. Bahmni Standard

This version is designed for large hospitals and healthcare facilities, providing a complete set of integrated modules:

• EMR (Electronic Medical Record)
• LIS (Laboratory Information System)
• ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) through Odoo
• PACS (Picture Archiving and Communication Systems) integration

With Bahmni Standard, hospitals can manage complex workflows, inventory, billing, and lab management all within a single platform. You can read more about Bahmni Standard here.

2. Bahmni Lite

Designed for small clinics and hospitals, Bahmni Lite offers a lightweight, cloud-ready version of Bahmni with essential EMR and billing features:

• Integration with Crater, an open-source billing and invoicing system
• A simplified Lab Lite module for basic lab result management
• Support for analytics through Metabase
• Pre-configured with CIEL dictionary, forms, and drug lists for out-of-the-box usage
• Ideal for smaller healthcare facilities seeking quick deployment without the need for comprehensive lab or ERP functionality

You can read more about Bahmni Lite here.

Production-Ready with Extensive Features

Bahmni is built with a production-ready mindset, offering:

• Out-of-the-box and custom reports through Metabase
• Advanced authentication/authorization mechanisms
• Multi-language support (i18n) with Spanish, French, and Arabic options
• Full open-source accessibility, including data migration, import/export, and audit logs
• Continuous updates with numerous bug fixes, enhancements, and support for LetsEncrypt SSL

Conclusion

Bahmni's combination of flexibility, scalability, and robustness makes it a vital tool for improving healthcare delivery across diverse environments. Its modular design, open-source nature, and ability to run both in cloud and on-premise environments make it a highly adaptable solution for various healthcare needs. Whether for a small clinic with Bahmni Lite or a large hospital with Bahmni Standard, Bahmni stands as a critical solution for transforming healthcare systems in low-resource and high-resource environments alike.

For more information, visit the official Bahmni website at www.bahmni.org.