A case study

2014-2015
By Kevin, Yuki Zhong and Joel Yu for SIGHT at HKUST

Overview
In the summer of 2014, SIGHT students visited the NGO One-2-One Cambodia in Phnom
Penh (photos on below). They tagged along during their various assignments and looked for ways
to help them with their day-to-day functions with technology. Back they came with 2 ideas on how
to make One-2-Ones operation easier, the Electronic Medical Record System (EMRS), a software,
and the Pharmabox, a hardware. Student teams were assigned to each project, with the hardware
team named Cheesecake. Both teams came up with prototypes by the end of the semester, but
everything started all over again in the spring semester, with change in personnel in both teams, and
the Pharmabox was also renamed the Drug Dispensing Box (DDX). This case would focus on the
spring of 2015.

Team Cheesecake

Joel Yu
Year 4

Kenneth Cheung
Year 3

Molecular Biomedical
Sciences

Mechanical Engineering

Melody Chung
Year 2
Biochemistry (IRE)

Joined Spring 2015

Jisoo Lee
Year 3
Chemical & Byproduct
Engineering, General
Business Double Major

Chemistry

Mohamed Thalha
Year 2

Brian Wong
Year 3

SBM undeclared

Electronic Engineering

Joined Summer 2014

The Cheesecake Team, year of study are as of the 2014-2015 school year.

Nadiya Yudiana
Year 2

Background
The One-2-One Cambodia medical team takes weekly trips to the slums to provide mobile
clinic services to the inhabitants there. Part of this team is the mobile pharmacy, which the staff
would pack all medicines into a suitcase and chuck it to the slums. This was an inconvenient and
inefficient way of transporting, organizing and dispensing the medicine.

Outcome

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Original

Team building
Unpack the
problem

Review existing
solutions
Set scope and
deliverables

Ideation and
brainstorming
workshop

Fast prototyping
workshop

Reality

The Cheesecake Team worked with One-2-One Cambodia to develop a new way of transporting
and organizing medicine during transport, one which not only allows the medical team greater ease
during transport, quicker setup times of the pharmacy station and more convenient inventory checks,
but also a solution that is attuned to the environment in which it operates. Two sets of DDXes were
made, brought over to Phnom Penh and handed over to One-2-One Cambodia, where the 2 DDXes
are now enjoying their field testing phase. One-2-One is now providing SIGHT with feedback, and
the Cheesecake Team is providing technical support. The Cheesecake Team is currently looking for
ways to manufacture more DDXes with less student-labour intensive methods, such as 3D-printing
or even engaging factories to produce DDX on a mass scale.

Team building
Unpack the
problem

Review existing
solutions
Set scope and
deliverables

Ideation and
brainstorming
workshop

Fast prototyping
workshop

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

1st reality check

1st expert check

Midterms

2nd guest check

1st reality check

1st expert check

Midterms

2nd guest check

POSTPONED

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Week 12

2nd reality check

Local partner check

WORK!!

Video submission .

2nd reality check

Local partner check

CANCELLED

WORK!!

Video submission
POSTPONED

Week 13

May

June

June 8

Final presentation

Finals

Prepare for
Cambodia trip

Flight to Cambodia

2nd guest check

Finals, work begins

once one is done
with his/her nals

Buy materials and

rush the production
of DDX

Finished last DDX in

the morning

Final presentation
Video submission

Flight to Cambodia

Project Schedule of the Cheesecake Team.

Fall Recap

The fall of 2014 was rather frustrating for the
Cheesecakes. The team was ambitious upon return,
deciding that the Pharmabox should not be just a bag,
but also a table, bag, drawers, vaccine carrier all rolled
into one. The project was on the verge of overreaching
itself. Thankfully, Prof. Jim Patel of Stanford dropped by
and gave them the advice, focus on one thing only.
After much heated discussion, the one thing became
the drawers.
The many ideas for the Pharmabox.

The team started off by modifying suitcases,
but that did not work so they tried to make their own
suitcase with plastic, which was quite impossible
without heavy machinery. A plan to make a hi-tech
table as the selling point never materialised. In the end,
for the final presentation, they made in 3 days a box
on wheels with drawers from Japan Home City and
a table on top. The Cheesecakes themselves were not
satisfied, it was sad for them that the final product was
just drawers from Japan Home City. The Medbox was
just not ready for implementation, it was too simple
and bulky.

Choose one
function!!
-Prof. Jim Patell

Inspiration

The first generation of Cheesecakes went to
Phnom Penh and shadowed the One-2-One medical
team during their mobile clinic services at the slums.
From start till end, so starting with preparation,
different transportation phases, set-up, service and
pack-up of the mobile clinic. They visited 4 slums in
total, documented the conditions and the operations
of the medical team at each one with cameras and
also interviewed members of the One-2-One medical
team.

The conditions of the slums were simply dire.
There was trash everywhere, cramped living spaces.
The stink of rubbish permeated the air, and children
were often neglected, running around shirtless and
barefooted. Clean water was hard to come by in the
slums and personal hygiene is neglected. It was a

We understand how
and why slums develop,
have a glimpse on the
living conditions in
the slums.
stirring experience for the team, to see the conditions
in the slums, and also the dedication of the One-2One staff.

The Cheesecakes identified the major issue
for them to tackle was the way of transporting their
medicine to each slum, as the method used then was
too cumbersome in the following ways.

The One-2-One
medical team members
were very devoted
to their jobs,
professional and
humble.

First, the medicines were just in disarray
upon arrival at the slum, with the reasons below. The
medicines for each slum were packed into suitcases
before leaving the headquarters, and suitcases are not
known for having any organising tools inside them.
Upon arrival, the medicines inside would be in disarray
due to endless sloshing during transport. The staff then
had to sort and place the medicines orderly on a table
in order to begin pharmacy service. This whole process
takes around 30 minutes, eating into their servicing
time.

Second, when the medical team returns back
to the office, they would have to do an inventory

check. This was of course complicated by the situation

that the medicines in the suitcase would be disheveled
again. All this drove the Cheesecake team to think of
better ways of organising the medicines, and the One2-One staff concurred.

Third, the Cheesecake Team observed that
although the suitcases came with wheels, the suitcases
were still carried by hand. It turned out that the wheels
were all broken due to rough roads in the slums. Most
of the One-2-One medical team were also female and
lacked muscle tone, thus finding it hard to carry the
suitcases by hand. So the Cheesecakes decided to
improve on the mobility aspect as well.

So in the end, the Cheesecakes came up with
this Need Statement,

To design a drug
carrier that can
reduce the time
required for mobile
pharmacy setup.

Clockwise from top right: Transport of the mobile clinic via tuk-tuk; Disorganised medicines upon arrival; Settingup the pharmacy station; The mobile clinic in action.

Ideation

On paper, the Cheesecakes had one week
allocated for the ideation process (see Project
Schedule, page 3). But it must be understood that
the whole design process was not linear, and the
team often backtracked throughout the project.
Often some ideas would not work and the team
had to start all over again.

Before generating ideas, the Cheesecakes
had to come up with specifications that could
satisfy One-2-Ones needs. They grouped these
specifications into different categories, such as
medicine holder, interior, transportation, exterior
and material. The specifications are listed in the
table below,

The Cheesecake Team met and generated Post-its are a great way to generate ideas. Here are
many different ideas on how to tackle the above the specifications/needs came up by the team.
issues. They took care not to judge on each others
ideas at this stage, no matter how outlandish it
Criteria categories and their specifications.

sounded, it was important to them that they can

extract every bit of creativity at this stage. They
generated huge amounts of ideas on Post-Its
and only afterwards they critiqued the different
methods and voted for each category their

favourite solution. After voting, the team decided

to make a solution as a backpack with wheels; it
offers the comfort of towing it on the ground and
flexibility in case it rains.

Solutions for each category and their votes.

Prototyping

Prototyping came in many different
stages. In early prototyping, the team often
made prototypes just for the proof of concept, so
prototypes were crude. The motto then was,

To fail cheaply and

quickly

Crude, fast prototypes for the proof of concept.

Like ideation, the prototyping was done
with the different categories in mind, namely the
interior, exterior framework and skin designs. The
interior concerned the holding and organisation of
the medicines. Exterior framework accommodates
and supports the interior; whereas the skin isolates
the interior from the external environment. Three
prototyping stages were conducted at which all
parts would be combined and tested as a functional
prototype during reality checks. Reality checks are
considered the midterm tests of the project, where
prototypes are required to perform a series of tasks
mimicking their operation. The scope and criteria
of theses reality checks are proposed by the team
themselves. All these events are summarised in
the timeline next page.

1st Prototype &

Reality Check

The 1st prototype was very crude, just
testing the organising power of rubber bands and
the concept of attaching the DDX onto a trolley.
Plastic drawers were added with hooks made from
paperclips and the innards were laced with rubber
bands, forming trays.

Thus was the scope for the 1st reality
check, where the team had to mimic loading the
DDX onto a tuk-tuk, unloading them from the
tuk-tuk, setting up the pharmacy station and a
timed test of medicine retrieval using the rubber
band-organised trays. At this stage the prototype
accomplished these tasks well. Prof. Chau also
took one of the trays the team made to Phnom
Penh during Easter for feedback, and also obtained
information on the shapes, sizes and categories
of the medicines used there, this would become
valuable information later.

2nd Prototype &

Reality Check

For the 2nd prototype, a fully-functional
prototype was expected, so the team set out
to make 2 sets of DDX that would be waterproof, stab-resistant, able to be attached on a
trolley and carried as a backpack, all the while
providing organisation in the interior. A frame was
constructed with PVC pipes, drawers were made
from modified plastic baskets, the frame was
padded up with yoga mats and wrapped with a
water-proof fabric. The bag would be attached to
trolleys obtained from local markets.

At the 2nd reality check, the test was to
load the bags up with fake drugs, e.g. drug bottles
filled with water, packaged drinks, etc.. Two girls
from SIGHT then tested the DDX as backpacks
and as trolleys, and in the end there were stab
and waterproof tests. Just with loading there were
problems, the rails were too weak, and the straps
tore off easily due to the weight of the drugs. The
straps also cut into the shoulder of the girls due

28 1

1st reality
check

1st prototype .

22

February

10

2nd reality
check

31 1

2nd prototype

20

1st expert
check

10
March

1st half of DDX made

20

3rd prototype

10

2nd expert check

Final presentation

30 1

May

Flight

31 1

June

2 sets of DDX made

20

4X SPEED 4X SPEED 4X SPEED 4X SPEED 4X SPEED 4X SPEED

April

Development timeline of the DDX.

to the weight. On the trolley, the bags were too

loosely attached to the trolley, causing the trolley
to swivel. The team also omitted the width of the
pipes during calculation, leaving the frame much
larger and more ungainly. Only 1 DDX passed the
waterproof test and both failed the stab test. It was
clear by the end that the reality check was a total
disaster.

Besides reality checks, known experts in the
field also dropped-in and paid the Cheesecakes
a visit. Prof. Vincent Li, adjunct faculty with the
MAE Department was one of them. Currently he
is in Afghanistan working with Mdecins Sans
Frontires at one of their clinics. Although brief
the encounter was, he gave a few important
pointers for the DDX. The first DDX prototype was
green in colour, which had military connotations.
Prof. Li remarked that such overtones should be
rd
avoided when a product is serving a humanitarian
mission. And as the DDX could be carried on the
shoulders with straps like a backpack, Prof. Li, an
avid hiker himself, suggested adding a waist belt

The 3rd prototype was the one showcased to stabilise the bag onto the persons body.
during the final presentation, the team had a little
more than 1 month to finish it. The most pressing
problem at this stage was space-saving, to
compress the DDX to a portable size yet allowing
organisation within, this theme would continue
to haunt the team all the way to Cambodia. The
team had limited information on medicine shape/
size/variety from Prof. Chau and based their
calculations on such data, but they were in no
way definitive. The number one dilemma during
the whole project was that organisation always
came in the cost of negative volume.

3 Prototype &
Expert Check

The number ine

dilemma during the
whole project was that
organisation always
came at the cost of
negative volume.

Ideas churned out to combat this included
tray bases that could be adjusted, stretched,
removed. The size of the DDX is naturally linked
to this issue, so another way to this problem was
just to make the whole thing large enough. It was
extremely difficult to find the correct balance
between all these factors, and all this came when
the team had little time left. There was for a while
the possibility that the team could not deliver 2
full working sets of DDX to Cambodia. After a
meeting with the teaching team, the Cheesecake
determined that they had to work 4 times faster
and more efficient than before if they were to
succeed in delivering the DDXes. This is indicated
as the 4X speed period in the timeline.

10

Implementation

Arriving at Cambodia!

The DDX was finally flew over to Cambodia
A total of 2 sets
in early June along with the rest of the team for
the first rounds of field tests. A total of 2 sets of
of DDXes were brought
DDXes were brought over to Phnom Penh, and
over to Phnom Penh,
they were finished practically the morning before
the flight. Extra materials, spare parts and tools
and they were finished
were also packed to Cambodia for last minute
practically the
modifications. The boys room of the Cheesecake
Team was converted to a temporary workshop,
morning before the
with simple tools such as glue guns, saws, sewing
flight.
kits, spanners and so forth.

At the One-2-One office, it was the first
time for the Cheesecakes to work first hand
with One-2-Ones medicine, leading to more Teaching the One-2-One staff on DDX usage.
modifications. New elastic bands were made to
contain small, round glass bottles. There was more
space left than anticipated so the railing system
was ditched for a stacking system (see next page).
The whole DDX system was easy and intuitive for
the Cheesecakes to use, as they were the ones
developing it, but it was another case for the One2-One staff, as everything was new to them. The
team had to spend some time teaching the staff
how to use the DDX. To facilitate DDXs usage,
the team also helped the local staff with inventory
(see next next page).
11

Testing the DDXs capacity.

Designing and testing bottle-holding elastic bands.

Removing the wooden rails.

it was the
first time for the
Cheesecakes to work
first hand with One2-Ones medicine,
leading to more
modifications.
Testing new methods of storage.

12

Entering inventory.
All packed and set! The new way of storage freed up even more dead volume, and the staff is loving it!

Loading the DDX onto the tuk-tuk.

13

Set-up was much easier.

All the trays laid out for the pharmacy station.

Finally, the big day arrived, the Cheesecake
All medicines were
Team shadowed the One-2-One medical team to
the Banteay Sleak slum, while using the DDX to
still in order upon
carry their medicines. It was immediately clear
arrival and the trays
that the DDX had shortened the set-up and pack-
up time for the pharmacy station, from 30 minutes
just needed to be
to 3 minutes in set-up time. All medicines were
taken out to set up
still neatly packed upon arrival and the trays just
needed to be taken out to set up the whole station.
the whole station.
The trolley system also worked well, even at full
load the staff found it easy to tug the DDX into and
To this day, the DDX is being deployed
out of the slums. All in all, it could be said that by the One-2-One medical teams when bringing
both sides were satisfied with the DDX.
mobile clinic services to the slums, and this brings
the Cheesecakes real joy every time they see the
DDX in action!

It was immediately
clear that the DDX
had shortened the setup and pack-up time,
from 30 minutes to 3
minutes.

The medical team using the DDX after 2 months.

The trolley performed really well on this surface.

14

Multimedia

Throughout the whole semester, the whole
team had to document their progress using photos
and videos. Two video clips were produced to
introduce and showcase DDX, and often, part of
the team helped out with other SIGHT projects. For
example the team helped out during SIGHT week
by making displays and animations. Videos are a
great way to illustrate both work-in-progress and Displays for the DDX during SIGHT Week.
finished ideas, so their use is encouraged. Most
Videos are great
videos and photos were shot with smartphones,
picture quality is sufficient and their files are often
in showing both halfeasier to edit.

baked and baked

ideas,

Software Team

Alton Lee
Year 3

Kevin
Year 2

Jenny Kang
Year 2

Computer Science

Global China Studies

Computer Science

Samson Chan
Year 3

Lance Cheung
Year 3

Michelle Lee
Year 1

Sandra Sobaska
Year 1

Accounting & Finance

Computer Science

Computer Engineering

Global Business

The Software Team, year of study are as of the 2014-2015 school year.

15

Background
Recording patient data in Cambodia remains a tremendous challenge, due to inadequate
supporting infrastructure, low coverage rate, as well as low literacy rate for the general populace,
particularly in low-income settings. The SIGHT team partnered with One-2-One, a New Zealandbased healthcare NGO offering free medical services in Cambodias poorest areas, in developing an
Electronic Medical Record System (EMRS) to increase coverage rate for the patients, as well as to
ensure that every patient record can be computerised, enabling better management and analysis by
the organisation.

Inspiration

While the World Bank estimates
approximately 40% of Cambodians earn less than
2 US$ a day. There also exists a major absence of
comprehensive healthcare system. Health-related
services are predominantly managed by the private
sector, including non-governmental organisations
(NGOs).

SIGHTs first collaborating partner, One-2One Charitable Trust Cambodia, is one illustration.
The organisation offers free dental services,

Large bulky medical records.

16

motions (gym) program, education program, and

children nutrition program. Particularly, One-2One runs mobile clinics in some of the poorest
areas in the country, to provide free basic medical
service and medicine.

In June 2014, the first batch of SIGHT
students had a field trip to Cambodia, where
they were exposed to the situation and culture
of this country. The team collected firsthand
information regarding the partner NGO and

the underpreviledged communities they serve.

In that week, the students visited four slums in
Phnom Penh. In each visit, they shadowed the
medical team all the way from office to slum and
back, so as to understand the work flow of their
mobile clinics and empathise with the medical
team. The students also interacted with the slum
dwellers. They delivered simple health education,
interviewed dwellers, as well as observing the
environment in slums. Based on what they
observed, students had an in-depth interview with
the One-2-One medical team members. Both
quantitative and qualitative data were taken.

Sharing, discussion and brainstorming
were mostly conducted at night. Despite various
problems surfacing, those affecting the mobile
clinic were most prominent. The paper-based

It is not unusual
that a patient comes
to the clinic with a
different name from
last visit.

system that One-2-One was using to keep patient

records is one of them. Two major issues were
identified.

The first one is patient identification. It is
not unusual that a patient comes to clinic with a
different name from last visit. There are various
reasons behind this, such as low literacy and illegal
residence. It causes difficulty in retrieving old
records therefore serverly lowering the efficiency
in registry station, especially when a paper-based
system was being used.

The second problem is directly related
to the use of paper. After years of operation, the
mobile clinic has accumulated lots of records.
Every time they visit a slum, they have no choice
but to carry several binders of significant weight
and volume. It is particularlly inconvenient to a
mobile clinic. The delicate nature of paper also
made data safety a great concern.

The idea of an Electronic Medical Record
System (EMRS) tailor made for mobile clinics
in remote areas without internet connection
gradually matured. Four students formed the first
batch of software team, two in charge of coding
and two focusing on implementation and support.

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Team building
Project Handover

Review existing
solutions
Set scope and
deliverables

Ideation and
brainstorming
workshop

Fast prototyping
workshop

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

1st expert check

1st reality check

Set future
implementation
plan

Midterm break

Finalising user
interface

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Week 12

Prototype public
showcase
Fundraising &
laptop donation

Local partner check:

High school student
workshop

Internal testing &

debugging

Week 13

May

Late May-June

June 8

Final presentation

Finals

Final pre-trip
testing

Flight to Cambodia

2nd

reality check

Project Schedule of the Software Team.

17

Fall Recap

In the fall semester of 2014, although the
team managed to lay the groundwork and make
the first version of EMRS to test the concept, the
progress was not very satisfactory. The momentum
was not as strong when the team came back from
a long summer. While user needs are the center
of any design process and must be continuously
explored, especially for software engineering,
proactive communication with partner was
missing during the semester. Although there was
some communication with the partner, it was
far from comprehensive and frequent enough to
support project development.

Estimation of project workload might be
another issue. We found the coding power was
not enough for a project of this scale. Moreover,
the coding task was not divided methodically in
the beginning, this affected the team performance
more and more later in the semester.

Although there was

some communication
with the partner,
it was far from
comprehensive and
frequent enough to
support project
development.

The first batch of software team members
did not continue after fall semester due to other
commitments, resulting in a temporary limbo
for the EMRS prototype. The project was revived
again after new team members were recruited, this
time in a larger, and more complete, scope. The
succeeding team has 7, 4 in technical division,
and 3 primarily in product implementation.

Refinement & Ideation

Early ideas on UI design.

The new software team started with learning
the project background and reviewing the previous
prototype. However the technical handover was
not very smooth due to the absence of good
documentation. It took the team quite some time
and effort to understand the existing codes. When
the review was complete, the technical members
decided to partially keep the database and make
major revision to the user interface (UI).

Alton, one of the key coders, raised the
awareness and emphasised the importance of a

18

comprehensive and explicit user requirement(s)

specification, basically a list of detailed
description of user expectations for the product
to realise. Because it was new to the noncoding members, the importance was not fully
appreciated in the beginning, but the hard work
proved worthwhile later. The team embarked on
redesigning the UI. The implementation team
members, most of whom have little background
in computing, made great effort to study the work
flow of the mobile clinic, aiming for a UI that

frequent through all the possible channels, such

as email, Skype, Viber and many more, to align
the UI design with user needs. All the information
from users were processed and fed back to the UI
design

On the other hand, coders began to
configure the system and constantly reviewed the
latest UI design from the technical aspect to make
sure it was technically efficient and feasible. The
implementation members served as important
liaison between the users and coders. This process
took more time and effort than expected. After
multiple rounds of iteration, the framework of UI
was settled in late March.

Some features were designed after
was friendly and intuitive. They first referred to considering local aspects, such as the use of
the patient registration forms then used by One- fingerprinting for patient identification, and the
2-One. Simultaneously, communication efforts fast input method adapted to the frequently used
were restarted and reinforced between SIGHT and terms of the medical team.
One-2-One. Exchanges of information were made

However the
technical handover
was not very smooth
due to the absence of
good documentation. It
took the team quite
some time and effort
to understand the
existing codes.

Prototyping & Testing

The system was devided into components
and assigned to technical team members
according to their specialties. Thanks to better
project management and the very capable coders,
the system was delivered on time despite the tight
schedule.

Software testing, or what we called
reality checks, were conducted in a frequency
of one every 2-3 weeks. This is to observe the
performance of EMRS in settings that were made
as Cambodian as possible. It was proved an
effective way to discover problems that can be
fatal but easily overlooked.

This is to observe
the performance of
the EMRS in settings
that were made as
Cambodian as
possible.

Left: New UI; Right: Workshop for high school students.

19


Many considerations were taken into
account throughout the tests: compatability with
different operation systems of different versions,
distance between one computer and another in
transmitting the information, user-friendliness,
comprehensibility of medical terms, and also
impact on workflow.

When the team and their software were
ready to meet the first users, a workshop for
high school students was organised in April.
Over 25 students from 7 local high schools were
invited to HKUST to learn about global health
technology and participate in a role-playing
scenario as doctors and patients to test the system
in action. Observations were made to see how the
participants responded to the software, whether
the workflow became faster, and whether some

technical glitches remained. In May, the team

gave the final presentation, which was open to
all members of the HKUST community. The team
again received feedback from faculty members, as
well as HKUST students. Valuable feedbacks were
received in both events. Some examples included
contingency plans for server breakdowns,
digitalisation of old paper-based data, and culture
awareness in feature design.

The team also ran several internal tests to
find hidden bugs and test the systems limit.

It was through these frequent checks that
the team managed to discover technical glitches,
in the software and its features. Continuous
improvement became a constant feature in the
development of the EMRS.

Implementation
Preparation

Mid-April awareness campaign, Left: the counter of the campaign, the screen set-up on the right is
playing a promotional animation for SIGHT, the team also collected old laptops at the counter; Middle:
donations for fingerprint scanners; Right: Kevin of Software team explaining the workings of an early
prototype of the DDX

Beyond the software itself, the team also
the team also
worked on lots of other non-technical activities
surrounding and supporting the EMRS, such as
worked on lots of
awareness campaigns about ongoing health issues
other non-technical
in Cambodia, displaying the initial prototypes
on campus, fundraising for fingerprint scanners
activities surrounding
and a laptop donation drive during the twoand supporting the
day exhibition in mid-April, as well as outreach
to HKUST staff and computer manufacturers,
EMRS,
chiefly Lenovo, to secure further support for
laptop donations. The team also made occasional interested in endorsing the ideas of integrating
visits to social entrepreneurs and businesspeople technologies with healthcare and social needs.

20


The final preparation for implementation in
Cambodia took a meticulous mind. The power
supply for laptops was one example. It did not
take any programing skills, but could devastate
the implementation if not properly planned. The
team came up with several plans including the

usage of car batteries. After carefully weighing

pros and cons, laptop power banks were chosen.
The implementation team also took the lead to
prepare a thoughtful training package including
workshop sessions and user manual for One-2One to master the EMRS step by step.

Implementation
Meeting for
sustainable
implementation
Day
1

Flight to
Phnom Penh

Observation in House
Above Water
slum
Day
2

Day
3

Basic EMRS
training for
One-2-One

Set-up &
test by
students in
Canal Side slum

In-depth EMRS training

for One-2-One

Day
6

City Tour

Day
7

City tour

1st eld test by

One-2-One in
Canal Side
Day
slum
5
Collect user
feedback on eld
test

2nd eld test in

House Above Water
slum
Day
Project
8
scouting:
National
Pediatric Hospital

Project
scouting:
Helen Keller
International (HKI)

Day
9

Day
4

EMRS mock run by

One-2-One in ofce

Wrap-up
meeting with
One-2-One
Return to
Hong Kong

Software teams schedule at Phnom Penh.

The trip started with a site visit of One-2Ones mobile clinic service in House above water
slum. The staff ran the clinic with three stations:
Triage, Consultancy, and Pharmacy. Many aspects
were noted, such as the average time per visit in
each station, the numbering of patients, the twoway interaction between doctors and patients,
the way the staff noted down information from
patients, and how medicines were administered.
Other noted considerations included the age of
patients, how patients symptoms determined the
average time, and patients who already left before

they completed all the three stations.

Training was held for One-2-One staff
right after the site visit; after months of testing and
continuous improvement of the system, software
team members could now afford better expertise
in providing guidelines to SIGHTs partner in
Cambodia. Realizing that transition from paper to
computer was hardly easy, tutelage was provided
step by step; team members made use of user
manuals and flowcharts in simple, comprehensible
terms.

After basic training, the One-2-One staff
21

Left & middle: Kevin, Lance and Alton studying paper patient records and discussing how to incorporate
them into the software; Right: Education of One-2-One staff on the EMRS at their office.

The EMRS in action.

Left: First field test at the Canal Side slum, 20-30% time reduction was recorded for both the triage and
pharmacy stations; Right: The fingerprint scanner in action.

22

Realising that
transition from paper
to computer was hardly
easy, tutelage was
provided step by
step;
were guided to run simulations in office and later
field tests in slums. More rounds of simulation
were made, with software team members doing
their very best to guide and support the medical
team. Furthermore, the team also discussed further
with One-2-One in regard to potential ideas for
future expansion of EMRS roles.

Upon implementation, the software team
observed that the staff in One-2-One, in general,
were very committed to improving public health
for Cambodian communities, particularly among
the poor, and to making use of EMRS to accelerate
the flow of medical services, which can help
widen the scope of patients within their reach.

There were times of excitement, especially
for team members who visited Cambodia for
the first time. Being involved in a technologydisseminating project, and not simply volunteering,
especially in a developing country like Cambodia,
gave both SIGHT teams big hopes of how simple
technologies, created through direct humancentered approach, can solve major problems
there. The teams also observed such spirit in the
eyes of many Cambodians, especially those who
could barely afford basic healthcare services.
Because such was the eventual expectation

of most of the people to obtain access to these

amenities, the teams worked really hard to make
the products successful and accessible.

Nonetheless, the path towards such
goals was marred by obstacles, and numerous
unexpected circumstances. For example, when
the power banks were found uncompatible with
some of the donated laptops, there were worries
among the members if EMRS would eventually
work during the field tests. As much as the team
did well in understanding the mobile clinic,
adjustment and modifications were constantly
required to fix the problems that could only be
found after landing in Cambodia. Ad-hoc problem
shooting and plan making became a routine of
that week. Both coding and implementation team
members spent late nights in updating the system,
improvising features, formulating guidelines, and
also contingency plans. Compared to technical
issues, convincing the medical team to adapt
to a new way of work might be an even bigger
challenge.

While EMRS elicited generally positive
responses from One-2-One staff, the team
admitted that at first, there was a sort of thinly
veiled resistance to the change of system,
particularly given the fact many of them are not
used to speed-typing. Another challenge was the
formulation of a central drug inventory system,
which previously has been almost non-existent.
There were debates and arguments about the
concerns relating to the drug inventory system.
After further rounds of intense discussions and
deliberations, the team was eventually able to
convince One-2-One about the long term benefit
of a central drug inventory system. The software

Charts the software team prepared overnight for One-2-Ones long-term implemention of the EMRS.
Left: Implementation and transition timeline; Right: Transition diagram.
23

While EMRS elicited

generally positive
responses from One2-One staff, the
team admitted that
at first, there was a
sort of thinly veiled
resistance to the
change of system,
team came up with a roll-out plan of multiple
stages and made a written timeline overnight to
create a concrete path for smooth implementation
of EMRS and the transition of inventory system.

Steps of precaution also have to be
considered regarding device and data safety.
The team formulated safety measures based on
various contingent scenarios, such as rain, flood,
breakdown and robberies. Also, in collaboration
with the hardware team, the latter devised a basic
laptop accessory, this is discussed further in the
Team Dynamics section.

Nonetheless, with the fact that the software
was eventually able to work and function well,
optimism is high that the software will be viable
for the team in a longer term in part deriving from
this sense of cultural sensitivity and awareness of
local and social values.

Teach a man to fish! Channat (middle) is an

enthusiastic IT student who wants to use his
tech-savvy expertise to broaden knowledge and
education in Cambodia. In less than a week, the
coder Lance, Alton and Channat became close
friends. They frequently exchanged and shared
programming skills and information with Channat,
which he can apply to do much more.

The trip was adjourned with One-2-One staff

providing each team member with Cambodias
best fabric products.

24

Team Dynamics
Cambodia
2014

Fall
2015

Spring
2015

Cambodia
2015

Cheesecake

Swapped

Stayed

New
members

Didnt go

Software
Team

Left the
team

Didnt go
New members
New members
Old members

How the teams evolved over the 2 semesters and the trip.

25

Software Team

The two SIGHT teams went through quite
different changes throughout the year, one team
was practically reconstituted while another just
In a software project, hardcore coders
expanded. These differences shaped how the
make
the
foundation of the technology. Among
teams developed. (See diagram in previous page.)
the four CSE students, Lance and Alton, despite
their hectic schedule due to final-year projects,
contributed predominantly in developing the
software, all the while coaching and supporting
the other two younger coding members, Jenny and

For the Cheesecakes, the team just Michelle. Lance also took up the role of project
expanded after the fall semester, it was an manager. Jenny contributed to the development
amalgamation of old and new members. New of web portal connected to the EMRS. Michelle
members brought new enthusiasm, expertise is the most junior, but she later became an
and energy to the team, while the old members intermediary, an important role who can look
provided the foundation to build on with their past at the implementation from the technical aspect
experiences. It took around 1 month for the team and vice versa. Samson is another key peron who
to really gel and work together, to get warmed up. tied the two divisions. Majoring in busines and
And since the semester actually isnt that long, this with understanding in programing, Samson knew
kind of ate into the working time of the team. One what information the coders needed exactly from
the users then proactively approached One-2One to look for answers. He is also a meticulous
It took around 1
member who looked after many details such as
hardware purchase, event planning and graphic
month for the team
design. Sandra provided a major boost for the
to really gel and
software project with her strong communication
work together, to get and management skills with other parties in many
occasions, such as the fundraising campaign,
warmed up.
outreaching for corporate partners, and making
transition plans. Kevin, originating from the
thing of mention is that it could be demanding to social sciences, possessed strong writing skills,
have the old members to focus and work at the and also related knowledge about global health,
same level of intensity as they had last semester. developing countries, and their socio-economic
This is why the injection of new blood is always conditions, especially for Cambodia.
The combination of all the people from
welcomed. Workmate and commitment could
also be affected by the course registration status, different majors and backgrounds themselves can
the majority of the team were fully enrolled in the be a powerful impetus in ensuring the success of
project, when the team dynamics are functioning
course, while 1 was auditing.
well.

Open communication is the golden rule. In
general, the team members could voice out what
they needed from teammates and suppportively
responded to others, which was key to building
and maintaining a team. While this was not
properly done in the first semester, poor allocation
of manpower and underperformance of the team
followed.

In an interdisciplinary team, it is also
important to be patient in sharing what you are
good at, and be humble in learning what you
are not. While this was not fully appreciated in
the very beginning, the team members have held
much more appreciation in seeing each others
The Cheesecakes with cheesecakes, treat by Yuki! strength and specialities after all the ups and

Team Cheesecake

26

In an
interdisciplinary
team, it is also
important to be
patient in sharing
what you are good at,

Project C

Project C came into being when the
software team wanted to provide their computers
some pack-up time when it starts to rain during
One-2-Ones mobile clinic services. They wanted
some kind of rain cover for the laptops, and
hoped that the covers can also double as paddings
to protect the laptops during transport. They
approached the Cheesecakes with this idea and
the Cheesecakes immediately said yes and started
the development of Project C, the laptop cover
project. Project C aimed to provide: temporary
protection from rain to give more time to pack, air
vents for laptop ventilation and cooling, padding
for laptop during transport, screen hood to block
off sunlight from the screen, reflect sunlight away
to prevent overheating, laptop platform for better
ergonomics. A crude prototype was made and
presented to team Saturday and One-2-One. All
this happened during the trip in Phnom Penh.

downs together in the semester and the trip.

The commitment and persistence of team
members can not be over emphasised. Despite
all the tight schedules and busy study, most of the
software team members did a good job in pushing
the project through. As a reward, the team members
got the greatest satisfaction to witness the impact
of their own work. However, weve also seen
counter examples, which hurt team spirit and left
unhappy team experience among members.

SIGHT projects are student-driven. With
different backgrounds and specialties, all team
members came together with the same passion in
using technologies and related skills to answer the
real needs in the real world. We hope after SIGHT
projects, you will find yourself more confident in Cheesecakes demoing Project C prototype to the
innovating, in caring, and in interacting with the software team.
world.

Every Tuesday and Thursday evening, for the whole

Spring semester, software team members met on a
special lab. In a startup-like environment, everyone was encouraged to do outpouring of ideas
and creativity, occasionally followed by outbursts,
daily anecdotes, and some serious thoughts about
the fate of EMRS. Sometimes we just exchanged
jokes. Hey, you gotta live, you know?

27