Description of Systems Implementation Scenario, Essay Example

Brief description of systems implementation scenario (Failure to adequately consider all options/conditions)

This case study reflects on the San Francisco Bay Area Hospital: Electronic Health Record System Implementation. This is a 300 bed public hospital institution. Analysts began implementing the electronic health record system in June 2011 with an estimated finish date of June 2013. The entire project was estimated to cost millions which had to be carefully monitored during the implementation phase.  Four months into the project, however, it was discovered that reports filtered to the project manager made it difficult assessing and evaluating progress comparative to budget. Thus, the project came to a temporary halt(HFS Consultants, 2013).

Consequently, HFS consultants were asked to review the project and found that the use of contract labor was not considered. Also there were coding and policy errors. Managing unproductive time was another issue to be addressed in the implementation process that was initially bypassed (HFS Consultants, 2013).

Buy vs. make decisions, data based – client/server approach, security considerations…etc.

More importantly, the system analysis did not evaluate cost differences occurring when electronic health records are bought from another vendor or vendors take a decision making approach, which could be less costly. Consequently, the administration found it difficult aligning costs with the project progress. While data based – client/server implications were assessed the system analysts did not discuss its applicability to the specific situation of a 300 public hospital bed institution. A ‘one fit all’ evaluation was conducted and within a few months of the project implementation multiple client server issues surfaced. As such, understanding that ‘no single set of approaches or decisions can be applied universally to all situations … accordingly, systems analysis involves assessing situations and making decisions based on a range of possible issues and considerations’ is fundamental to  this undertaking (Modell, 2003).

References

HFS Consultants (2013). Case Studies. Retrieved on February, 3^rd,2013 from          http://www.hfsconsultants.com/pages/clients/electronic_health_record_implementation.shtm

Modell, M. (2003). Chapter-18: Manual and Automated Systems Examination. A Professional’s Guide to Systems Analysis (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.