Information System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Information System - Essay Example and, (ii) information dissemination to patients about their treatment modules, scanning procedures, precautions, preventions, and costs of treatments. This essay discusses the usefulness of our hospital’s information system on our work as a nurse and on our clients, the patients. Over the last few decades the information technology has progressed by leaps and bounds. Along the technology has grown the number of IT solution providers, the large multinationals, medium and small, and those working in specialised niche areas. When selecting an IT product or application the big company is not necessarily the best. The wisdom instead lies in selecting a company which provide the best solution to a specific need, at a reasonable cost. The ‘best of breed’ approach is therefore a strategic approach to select the best product for each solution, from a variety of companies, instead of buying everything from one company. This approach invariably gives optimal solution in each area, richer functionality, and thus establishes business linkages with more companies. Our hospital therefore uses the ‘best of breed’ approach for development and functioning of its information system. The ‘best of breed’ approach is, however, beset with its own problems as compared to the approach of selecting integrated systems that provide multiple applications with a common database, integrated sharing, convenience, and consistent user interface. A comparison of the two approaches is worthwhile to find out the comparative value of the two approaches: (i) Cost: Specialized features of ‘Best of Breed’ applications provide competitive advantage which serve to cut costs and increase revenue. The systems’ advance features compensate for higher up-front and on-going costs as against the integrated systems which may have lower licensing costs, may not require costly interfaces, and overall may be less expensive. Shared data in integrated systems also reduces