**Application of EPI Info 6.0 Software to Calculate Age**
Experience No.: 100.1 l337 (2002) 06-0550-02
CLC Number: Gl97.322
Document Code: A Hospital Overseas Personnel Management Information System Design
**Author:** Wu Hongwei (Information Center of Hainan People’s Hospital, Haikou 570311)
**Abstract:**
The establishment of the overseas personnel management system at Hainan People's Hospital is based on practical work requirements. This paper focuses on key technical issues that need to be considered when establishing a large-scale overseas personnel management system for institutions, including program design and system implementation. The practical application of the system is also evaluated.
**Keywords:** hospital; information systems; database
In recent years, with the deepening of China's reform and opening-up, especially after China's accession to the WTO, hospitals have experienced more frequent international exchanges. Medical staff at all levels are increasingly studying abroad, conducting research, and engaging in academic exchanges. Additionally, every year, many colleagues travel abroad to visit relatives and friends or for tourism. According to China's foreign affairs regulations, whenever staff members travel abroad, the personnel department must conduct detailed registration and fill out corresponding forms. At the end of the year, statistics on overseas trips are compiled and reported to higher authorities. Sometimes, due to work needs, it is necessary to check some overseas personnel files. If all these tasks are done manually, it will significantly increase the workload of the personnel department and affect efficiency. Therefore, we focused on the actual situation of overseas personnel management at Hainan People's Hospital and developed a management information system for hospital staff traveling abroad.
The basic structure of the overseas personnel management information system can be seen as a subsystem of the personnel management system or as an independent system. Considering the principles of versatility and portability, the system was designed as an independent information management system while increasing the data interface with the existing personnel management system to fully share its data resources. The system includes five functional modules: control module, overseas personnel registration and management (public), private overseas personnel registration and management, overseas personnel statistics management, and system management. Under the management of private overseas staff, there are three databases: the personnel database, the database for staff going abroad, and the system parameter library. The dashed line in the graph represents the personnel files database from the personnel management system database, which is connected via a data interface as shown in the diagram. All these components form the complete structure of the overseas personnel management information system, as depicted in Figure 1.
To calculate age using software, the first two digits represent the year, and the last two digits represent the month. The array is established for calculation, and the procedure is as follows:
```
INPUT )? YEARB? YEARS
BIRTHS = STR(BIRTH, 4)
M0NTHBS = SUBSTR(BIRTHS, 3,2)
M0NTHB = VAL(M0NTHBS)? M0NTHBS
SURVEYS = STR(SURVEY.4)
M0NTHSS = SUBSTR(SURVEYS, 3,2)
M0NTHS = VAL(M0NTHSS)? MONTHS
IF M0NTHB <= MONTHS
AGE = YEARS - YEARB
ELSE
AGE = YEARS - YEARB - 1
ENDI}.
```
Here, it is assumed that the survey date (`SURVEY`) and the date of birth (`BIRTH`) are four digits, with the first two representing the year and the last two representing the month. Running the above procedure in FoxPro yields an accurate age. If the calculated age does not require high precision (only requiring the calculation of years, not months), we can also use EPI6 with LET statements:
```
LET AGE = (9805 - BIRTH) DIV 100 (type, assuming the survey was conducted in May 1998)
```
For a January 2000 survey, the equation can be modified to:
```
LET AGE = (9910 - BIRTH) DIV 100 + 1
```
For a 2001 survey, replace `+1` with `+2`. The age is taken as a whole number, i.e., years old, and so on.
Good epidemiological statistical software provides very convenient methods for calculating age. With basic programming knowledge, I believe it is quite easy to calculate age using EPI6, and it is easy to grasp.