Haji Management by Implementing MIS

Haji Management by Implementing MIS

Executive summary

This proposal is about the Health Management System of Hajj function,, which is a global religious event held by Muslims annually. The management of the event has remained a challenge for over the years. It is prone to overcrowding which has continued to cause stampedes. Also, the congestion of the event is making the pilgrims vulnerable to contracting communicable diseases. Unfortunately, the current Health System is not able to address the problem. The two main processes considered as key areas to combat the problems, are movement coordination and health services. However, the greatest weakness is on the technology used by the management of the event to run the two processes. Largely, the functions are done manually. Even in some occasions people have got lost while others killed from stampedes. Contagious diseases are also a threat. They are likely to escalate because of poor movement and monitoring strategies. The only technology used currently, is mobile applications. It is main work is to track the pilgrims driving in the area. That is a limit since it cannot support walking pilgrims. In relation to the findings of the case, the suggestions are made for improvement. The two, are use of RFID, and social media App integrated into the mobile technology. The approach will provde a robust of tracking all happenings in the areas. Communications about situations can be done in real-time. It is also possible to detect the points that are overcrowded. The technologies also will help access and manage health data of all pilgrims. That is essential in planning vaccination programs.

Introduction

In the events where huge human traffics happen, the persons attending continue to be exposed to several health risks. The risks are high with communicable diseases. In the recent past, diseases like Ebola, HIV, SARS, and MERS have posed a threat to human life. They spread fast where people come into contact. That implies, where events with huge crowds occur are more vulnerable. Such events could include religious congregations, political rallies, conferences and any all other related social gatherings. The health risks are dire since they lead to loss of life (Yamin, 2019). In that regard, it is increasingly becoming vital to manage such events in a manner that reduces chances of infections. In respect to that, we consider the concept of technology and in particular the use of Management Information System (MIS) in managing human traffic to reduce possible health risks. In the analysis, we utilize the case of Hajj Management.

Case study

Hajj is a Muslim religious event held annually in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Any person who is of Muslim faith irrespective of the geographical location, race, culture, or age can apply to attend the event. They do so through travel agents based in their countries. The event takes place from 8^th-12^th of Dhulhijja, which is a month of Islamic calendar. Approximately 3 million participants are granted permission to take part. About ten million people apply to attend (Yamin, 2015). Reasonably, 3 million people is a huge crowd. In any case there is a contagious disease, the impact could be huge. That is because the intense crown creates a possibility contamination of contagious diseases. In response to that, the tracking and accessibility as well as identification of pilgrims is essential.

Business processes and intended purpose

Hajj management involves several processes. However, for this particular analysis we focus on the processes of movement coordination and health services management. The process of movement coordination is meant to help the pilgrims move with ease (Yamin, 2019). That is advised to reduce not only the possibility of stampedes but also contact among the attendees. On the other hand, the process of health services management, is used to screen, and identify possible diseases that can easily transmit among the pilgrims (Yamin, 2015). The two processes concurrently. While the coordination of movement reduces the chances of contact, health services reduces the chances of allowing individuals with contagious diseases to get into the venue. The processes mitigates the possibility of the health risks from happening.

Overall business of the chosen organization

The event is a religious one. All the Muslim faiths of the world come together once a year to perform the rituals of Hajj. The sole purpose of the event, therefore, is to facilitate the travel and congregation of Muslim believers from around the world. They also organize and manage the event from the date of reporting to the day of closing. During the event, both foreign and local pilgrims attend (Yamin, Huang & Sharma, n. d.). A lot of activities, happen. The pilgrim health management system is, therefore, aimed at protecting the people who attend from infections. The management system puts in place measures that ensure no disease outbreaks that happen during the event. For example, the health system put in place supports the screening and vaccination of all the participants. The strategy helps reduce the possibility of getting infected incase there was a disease outbreak.

Overall business functions the health management system

Description of the functions

The identified functions of the health management system are movement coordination and health services management. During the Hajj event, several pilgrims attend. They travel from different parts of the world to perform the rituals. However, many of them go missing while others require urgent medical attention. The occurrence of human jams and health hazards are more likely (Yamin, 2015). The chances of the communicable viruses spreading are very high. The situation demands for measures to reduce the risks. In that regard, one of the functions of the health management system is to ensure the people present do not become so close. They do so by planning how they should move. Also, the health management system is used to detect any possible communicable, or contagious diseases that are likely to occur. That is done with the intent of prevent the causes of such illnesses.

Role of IT in the case

The recent outbreaks like HINI virus, bird flu and Corona Virus, is proofing that crowd management will remain a big challenge. All those people in the crowds are vulnerable to such diseases. It is recommendable that a comprehensive medical examination be done to identify and treat the diseases. Immunizations can also be administered. However, the process is not to administer. The organizers find it difficult to keep track of all the data about the participants (Yamin & Ades, n. d.). In the current case, the same trend is witnessed. It is not easy to monitor and track personal health information of the all the participants. An advanced Management Information System (MIS) is required. Information Technology (IT), can be used to monitor and isolate possible health cases. Further, it is a means of keeping and tracking medical data. Large databases about the pilgrims can be kept.

IT in the current case

Currently, the Health Management System of Hajj utilizes mobile applications in managing the pilgrim as shown in figure 1 below. As pointed out by Yamin et al. (2018), large crowds draws visitors from different parts of the world. Some end up getting lost. The mobile devices can be used to detect their locations. However, in the current case, it is used to observe the travel parts in real-times as shown in the diagram below. The technology is used to identify the location of pilgrims using the ID tags. The tags enable the addition of more information about the pilgrims (Yamin et al., 2016). In particular, data related to the health of individuals is added. Further, the technology enables the pilgrims raise alarms whenever they need help. The mobile software is used in both processes. That is in managing movement and health services.

Figure 1: Hajj Management System

(Source: GIS Innovation Center, n. d., http://www.gistic.org/hajj-management-system/)

Problems existing in the current processes

The problem with the current functions is controlling the number of pilgrims attending the ritual. Even though the organizers plan to permit less than 2 million people to attend, there are occasions pilgrims have exceeded that number. For example, in 2012 over 3.65 million Muslims performed Hajj at the place (Yamin, 2015). The organizers of the event are expected to adhere to the international standards limiting the number of people who should gather in a place at any given time. Unfortunately that is not the case with Hajj management. The system used are mostly manual. It becomes a challenge to monitor and keep the data of attending pilgrims. Most often, the event end up being crowded. At times, stampedes have occurred leading to several deaths. The stampedes results because of lapse in systems used to manage the movement of people. It is an indication that the persons attending are vulnerable to contagious disease since they are overcrowded. From the onset, the systems fail to plan and account for the people attending the event. Possibly, the mobile applications used are not sufficient in manning the process (Yamin et al., n. d.). For instance, the systems allows the fitting of the devices to the vehicles used by the pilgrims. That is a limitation since it is not easy to monitor the movement of pilgrims from Jeddah city to Mecca where the stampedes main occur.

Additionally, the health services management process is facing the problem of contagious viral diseases which continue to occur. The disease like Swine flu, Ebola, SARS and Corona Virus have caused havoc to the world. There is no guarantee that they will not reoccur. The continued reemergence of the virus is pose a major threat to Hajj and its entire health services management process. In the past, the illegal pilgrims have entered the venue (Yamin, 2015). Unfortunately, they have infected the crowds. Notably, the current technology of mobile applications used by the management has not been effective. It is only used on the persons officially permitted to attend. In that regard, it is not feasible that the technology as its will offer a comprehensive solution. The health risks will persist. It is a call that the Hajj management team think of a more elaborate technology to collaborate the two process; movement of people and managing health services.

How Information Technology can be used to improve the processes

Most of the functions within Hajj management process are done manually something that is resulted in increased incidents of stampedes and health risks. Information Technology bears a solution to the problems experienced in the processes (Yamin et al., 2016). Other than the use of mobile applications, the Radio Frequency Identification (FFID) can be used to improve the two processes.

The RFID technology is used to transmit data to a tag using a wireless signal as shown in figure 2 below. Once the attached tag is activated, it transmits the data therein to the reading instrument (Haddara & Staaby, 2018). That triggers interpretation and action on the information generated.

Figure 2: RFID technology functioning process

(Source: Shutterstock, n. d., https://www.shutterstock.com/search/rfid+tag)

One good thing about the technology, it is the distance and speed. The frequencies generated can be read in distances exceeding 150 miles. Also, it can be of any range between 100-500 kHz (Yamin et al., 2016). Depending on the frequency band used, a signal can be traced in real-time.

On the other hand, the mobile applications currently used by the system is not sufficient. Its success depends on the information that has been captured. Although it is an affordable and readily available strategy, it is not easy to control its use (Yamin et al., 2016). The strategy can also be incorporated with social media use to make it more effective. The number of people on social platforms as shown in figures 3 and 4 below, has continued to increase. That is making the social media and mobile use approaches preferred for management in organizations. Perhaps the only challenge to deal with this technology is the synchronizing of data. In most cases, data is generated randomly (Haddara & Staaby, 2018). That makes it difficult to act in a timely manner.

Figure 3: Graph showing the number of people using social media platforms globally

Figure 4: Global facts about social media use

(Source: Yamin et al. 2016)

The two technologies have applied by various organizations to facilitate the management of various processes. For example, RFID is used to track and collect data in various industries, including manufacturing, pharmaceutical, retail and logistics among others. The technology is considered a major innovation in the healthcare sector (Haddara & Staaby, 2018). It is helping to increase operational efficiency, and organizational safety. The technology allows the tagging of inventory, assets and data about the patients. In the current case, the technology will allow the managers of Hajj incorporate all relevant information about the pilgrims (Yamin et al., 2016). The information could be used to control movement and initiate appropriate health interventions.

Further, the technology of social media and mobile applications will also suit in the health management system of Hajj (Yamin et al., 2016). Research has shown that the technology is used to create a network of communication as shown in figure 5 below. For example, in the case of human trafficking, traders link using the technology. They discuss their transactions through the platforms (Sarkar, 2015). The even go a step further, to encrypt their hosting devices making it difficult for the police to investigate. Most probably, in the current case, the technologies will be used to develop a communication network. Potentially, they will interaction among the members.

Figure 5: Proposed use of social media App

(Source: Yamin et al., 2016)

As shown in diagram 5 above, the social media App enables the use of Global Positioning System. In return, it is integrated with free Wi-Fi service to communicate any incident occurring in crowded zones (Yamin et al., 2016). Further, it enables group timing a service that is essential in controlling the movement of people at any given time.

How the suggestions would empower the stakeholders

The technological suggestions provide an insight into what the event managers should focus on addressing the identified issues. The management of Hajj remains a challenge because of the large number of believers who attend the ritual. They overcrowd. That not only subjects the pilgrims to the risk of stampede but also the possibility of contracting contagious diseases. The Health Management System entails two critical process, which include movement coordination and health services management (Yamin et al., 2008). In implementing the recommended suggestions, several stakeholders will be involved. Consequently, the recommendations will empower the stakeholders by enlightening them about the use of technology to manage the two processes in a more effective way. Further, the suggestions will expose them to the best practices used in managing large crowds (Yamin et al., n. d.). To a large extent, the stakeholders will understand their role in implementing the suggestions. Finally, the suggestions are vital in identifying other process that should be put in place for effective management of Hajj event (Haddara & Staaby, 2018). Some of the processes to incorporate, include accommodation, meals, financial services, counselling, managing of the deceased, and information sharing.

Issues that arose from the from the study

The research about the case study revealed several facts. Firstly, it is clear that Hajj management process is largely manual. The approach is giving way to risks arising from overcrowding. For example, people go missing since some of the pilgrims are foreigners. Also, because of stampedes, some lose their lives (Yamin, 2015). Further, the manual process is not sufficient in in addressing health issues associated with the large crowd formed during the Hajj ritual. The attendees are vulnerable to contagious diseases.

Additionally, the research revealed that the Hajj management is using mobile applications, mainly to manage the movement of people and health services. However, the strategy is limited because its functionality depend on the availability of the mobile devices. The Pilgrims who have smartphones, for instance, benefit the most (Yamin, 2019). However, the technology is useful in tracking the movement of vehicles. When the pilgrims are out of their vehicles, it becomes difficult to track and monitor their movement. Consequently, the problems of movement and provision of health services continue to persist.

Conclusion

Hajj event is a religious function held annually by the Muslim believers. It attracts visitors from around the world and perceived to be the largest crowd held in the world. Over 2 million pilgrims attend the event. However, for several years the event has been on the focus because of sad happenings that occur during the function. The city of Mecca gets overcrowded. In some cases, stampedes occur leading to several deaths. They overcrowding expose the attendees to communicable diseases. It is established that it remains a challenge to screen, identify and vaccinate the pilgrims against viral diseases. Based on that, the management of the function has initiated a Health Management Systems to help cushion the participants from contagious disease. The systems is concerned with the processes of managing movement and health services. Even though that is the case, the processes have proofed to be a major challenge. The management heavily relies on manual strategies except the use of mobile applications to track the movement of vehicles. There is need to improve the processes using appropriate technologies. The two recommended strategies, are RFID, and Social Media. Social media will be used to advance the current technology of mobile applications. The technologies will help track and monitor the movement of people to avoid overcrowding. Also, the use of social media platforms will enable the participants to network and share any urgent information through the media.

References

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shutterstock (n. d.). RFID tag images. Retrieved from          https://www.shutterstock.com/search/rfid+tag)

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