GSoC Project - Dialplan (PBX) generation for patient communication

Hi,

Below I have tried to answer the questions that have beem mentioned on the GSoC website by HISP.

  1. Who are you? What are you studying?

I am Nakull Gupta - a student at the Birla Institute of Science and Technology in India. I am pursuing my B.E.(Hons.) in Computer Science over here.

I am an ex-GSoC participant for GDCM - Grassroots DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine)

** ** - a Medical Imaging Library. Presently I am an Research Intern at Microsoft Research India ( a six month stint ).Over here I am contributing to the Technology for Emerging Markets group which develops products and services for people in Developing countries.****

  1. Please provide the URL to your DHIS Launchpad personal profile page. (If you don’t have one yet, please create one.)

https://launchpad.net/~gupta-nakull

  1. Why are you the right person for this task?

I have always had an interest in developing products for developing countries and DHIS2 seems a wonderful effort in this direction. It holds a great deal of promise for people in my country itself wherein Healthcare facilities need strong improvements - specifically in rural areas. Both my parents are doctors practicing in India so I myself have some hands on experience in managing patient data and treatment programs. I am deeply motivated for this cause and feel a better healthcare system is a must for a better society.

Regarding my technical skills I have experience in contributing to Open Source Projects( past GSoC). I am comfortable with large code bases, version control( git, bzr, tfs ), agile development, incremental development etc. I feel confident that I will be able to complete the project which I undertake and help in creating an impact on the lives of those who are benefited by HISP.

I am interested in the Project - Dialplan (PBX) generation for patient communication.

  1. What is your work style? How will you personally provide structure, discipline, and accountability in your work?

I believe in an incremental approach and that the there should be deliverable’s at each stage of the project. This way there will be accountability at each stage plus bug tracking and removal will be much easier. Appropriate buffer time and time for documentation should also be kept.

Also I will provide periodic updates to my mentor and use the mailing list and IRC channel when at a roadblock.

  1. Do you have any other commitments we should know about?

No. I will be finishing my internship in Microsoft Research by 15th of June. After that I will be free for the duration of GSoC.

  1. Do you have experience with any of the following technologies: Java, JavaScript, Struts, Spring, PostgreSQL, HTML5? (Experience with any/all is not a requirement.)

I have experience in Java - did courses in it as well as projects. Also I have programmed in C++(in my last GSoC) and in C#( at Microsoft Research). I also have a broad overview of Struts and Springs. Besides I have a decent experience in Web Technologies ( HTML5, JavaScript). As my project involves using Asterisk, I have started exploring the commands in it. Also I am experienced in XML related technologies.

  1. List any other web or mobile development experience.

I am a contributor to the VidWiki Project<http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/projects/vidwiki/> - a Microsoft Research India initiative.

Also I developed a Website for my parents hospital - <

http://www.suryahospital.co.in

.

  1. List any previous experience working with open source projects. (not a requirement.)

I participated in the last GSoC for GDCM - a Medical Imaging library implementing the DICOM standard. My project involved mapping DICOM files to XML and vice - verse. I also created a XSD and a Relax-ng Schema for the same.

  1. Please provide links to projects created by you and/or source code examples.

My github repository for the GSoC Project - <www.github.com/Nakull/GDCM> , the wiki page - <http://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawiki/gdcm/index.php?title=GSoC_2012_Export_From-To_XML>. My projects at Microsoft Research are protected by an NDA , so I would not be able to provide source code examples.

  1. What is your preferred method of contact and how should we reach you with it? (phone, email, Skype, IRC, IM, etc.)

Skype, Mail, IM(gtalk- gupta.nakull), IRC(by the name of Nakull)

Current Status

I have already downloaded and built the source code. Also I am going through the demo and prototypes to get an idea about how DHIS2 works. I am also exploring Asterisk and how it could be used in generating Dial Plans after parsing Patient Programs.

I hope to be ready with a tentative timeline in some time when I have a clearer idea of the exact workflow.

I would be grateful if you could provide any feedback as well as any suggestions on how I should proceed.

Thanks!

Nakull Gupta