Design for an information system Research Paper

Design for an information system - Research Paper Example Broadly, an information system in the context of an organization is the harmonization of user needs, standard operation procedures, data, software, and hardware to process and manage digitized information. The need to computerise traditional health care information systems is overwhelming. Health care systems need pooling of patient records, better and more easily accessible electronic health records, patient scheduling and billing services for patients. The need for robust and highly functional computerised systems for an urgent care facility are especially critical, and system developers have already made considerable inroads in implementing the use of computerise systems for the management of the facilities. System development depends on a number of methodologies whose overarching mandate is to ensure the entire process of development to implementation goes smoothly, achieves the initial objectives and gives a desirable benefits-to-costs match. In this study, we look at the comput erization at SFO Medical Clinic, a Californian clinic that among other services offers urgent care to its broad range of patients. The goal of this paper is to identify and document a fully functional information system for a small company. Table of Contents Abstract 2 Table of Contents 3 Introduction 4 SDLC Models and Complexity of Software Development 4 Preliminary Investigation 5 Requirements analysis 5 System Design 6 System Development 7 System Integration 7 System Testing 7 Gaining User Acceptance 8 Installation and Deployment 8 System Maintenance 8 Conclusion 8 References 10 Introduction Development of an information system requires more than knowledge and expertise in drafting excellent designs. Information systems have a far-reaching impact, with the principal aim to improve or replace existing systems. Therefore, the need to emphasize functionality over design is the supreme purpose of developing an information system. The goal of making highly functional and more efficien t is self-evidenced in the information system methodologies and the varying approaches to software development through the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC). A SDLC is the major concept that fortifies user-oriented software development process. Urgent health care facilities, whether serving children, young people, aged, or emergency cases, require an intricate understanding of local systems. Urgent care facilities are unique in that they serve patients in situations where timely and planned treatment procedures are not possible (NHS Manchester, 2008). Through collaborative contribution to the elements pertaining to a certain urgent health care facility, an efficient information system is achievable. An information system for an urgent care facility should exhibit specificity to the needs of the patients, handiness of use for the staff operating the system, and safety in operation. The information system also helps in prevention redundancy in recording of patient data, and provide s a secure retrieval system, which also stores data on patients for easy recording and modification in subsequent visits. In this report, we consider the urgent department wing of the SFO Medical Clinic, in San Francisco, California. The urgent care arm experiences issues typical of such facilities in the US. The purpose of this report is to document the design and implementation of a new information system for an urgent health care facility. SDLC Models and Complexity of Software Development The SDLC aim is to result in a high quality information system, which meets all user needs and performs markedly better than the existing information systems, manual or otherwise. However, viewpoints differ as to the best model for the system development, a factor that is solely responsible for the