Development of an Information System for Elderly and Dependent Care: A Case Study of Rahan Subdistrict Municipality

Abstract

Thailand is transitioning toward becoming a complete aging society, signaling an urgent need for efficient information technology systems to support elderly care. With an elderly population aged 60 years and over totaling 14.03 million people, accounting for more than 20%

of the total population, this demographic shift has continuously increased the dependency ratio. Rahan Subdistrict Municipality faces challenges in managing elderly care data due to a paper-based system, resulting in delays in data recording, document loss, and untimely communication. This research aimed to (1) develop an information system for elderly and dependent care at Rahan Subdistrict Municipality, and (2) evaluate user satisfaction with the developed system. The system was developed using the Waterfall Model, with Vue.js for the user interface, Express.js as the backend framework, and MySQL for database management. The responsive web design supports four user types: system administrators (local volunteer caregivers), physicians, professional caregivers, and dependent elderly individuals. Core modules include user account management, home visit data management, individual care plan management, Activities of Daily Living (ADL) assessment, PDF report generation, and real-time notifications via the LINE Messaging API. The study employed purposive sampling to select 50 participants: 1 local volunteer caregiver, 1 physician, 2 professional caregivers, 8 dependent elderly individuals, and 38 family caregivers. A 5-point Likert-scale questionnaire was used to assess user satisfaction. Content validity was verified by three experts, yielding Index of Item-Objective Congruence (IOC) values between 0.67–1.00, while instrument reliability was confirmed with Cronbach’s α = 0.89. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and an independent t-test at a significance level of α = 0.05.

Results indicated that the developed information system functioned fully as designed and passed all testing criteria. The system reduced the time required for basic data entry from 15–20 minutes to 2–3 minutes (an 85% reduction) and eliminated document loss (from 12% to 0%). Medical personnel and staff reported an average satisfaction score of 4.31 (S.D. = 0.81), service recipients 4.34 (S.D. = 0.65), and the overall functional evaluation yielded 4.36 (S.D. = 0.75), indicating a high satisfaction level. The independent t-test revealed no statistically significant difference between user groups (p > 0.05). The system effectively reduced data redundancy, enhanced operational efficiency, facilitated real-time data access, and increased family caregivers’ confidence in monitoring elderly care. Mobile access further enabled real-time recording and tracking from any location. Therefore, the proposed system demonstrates that community-level elderly care information systems are both feasible and effective—particularly through the integration of the LINE API, a platform familiar to Thai users. This system can be extended to other local communities and serves as a valuable foundation for Thailand’s readiness toward a complete aging society.