New Century Health Clinic, Case Study

1. Organizational chart

2. There are three business processes performed by New Century, namely: insurance processing, patient records, and appointment processing. Although all the employees help whenever necessary in these tasks, there are specific employees in charge of them. Susan Gifford is responsible for the maintenance of patient records; Tom Cappaletti is responsible for insurance processing, while Susan Sung is in charge of appointment processing.

3. A transaction processing system will be used by New Century to handling transactions that involve collecting, alteration and retrieval of transaction information. Business processes such as insurance reporting, patient records, accounting, insurance reporting and tax reporting involve all these functions; therefore, a transaction processing system will me of paramount importance to the clinic. A business support system will be useful to the clinic in compiling patient subscriptions, introducing alternative income generating services and knowing its clients better. It is also important in extending and supporting business operations to promote the services of the clinic. For a business such as a clinic, the quality of its services is critical for its success hence the usefulness of this system.New Century Health Clinic, Case Study. The performance of employees is important for a business and it demands that the business organization provides support to its employees to help them enhance their performance. A user productivity system will be helpful in achieving this. Some tasks such as tax reporting and insurance reporting, accounting and patient records are prone to errors, and this system will help in minimizing such errors.

4. Business-2-Business e-commerce will be appropriate for the clinic during the systems development process because it be able to access instant information regarding market prices and availability of products. B-2-B will allow the clinic to transact business with suppliers of IT systems.

Five years back, cardiologists Timothy Jones and Dolores Garcia made a decision to combine their individual practices in Fullerton, California, to create the New Century Health Medical center. They wanted to concentrate on preventive medicine by assisting patients maintain health and by providing traditional medical care.

Dr. Jones just lately asked you to utilize him as an IT advisor. He wants you to help New Century develop an information system that will support the clinic’s procedures and future development. During a short assembly, he provided you with some qualifications information and requested your ideas about how to begin with.

At your office, you begin to examine New Century’s situation. The medical clinic is situated near a fresh shopping mall in a busy section of the city. New Century’s personnel includes four doctors, three authorized nurses, four physical therapists, and six office personnel workers.

The clinic currently has a patient bottom of 3, 500 patients from 275 different employers, many of which provide insurance coverage for employee health and fitness and health maintenance. Presently, New Century accepts 34 different plans.

Anita Davenport, who may have been with New Century since its inception, is the office manager. She supervises the staff, including Fred Dark brown, Susan Gifford, Tom Capaletti, Lisa Sung, and Carla Herrera.

Fred Brown grips office payroll, tax reporting, and earnings distribution on the list of affiliates. Susan Gifford is in charge of the maintenance of patient data. Tom Capaletti handles almost all of the paperwork relating to insurance reporting and accounting. Lisa Sung has the key responsibility for the session book, and her tasks include making reminder telephone calls to patients and organizing daily session lists. Carla Herrera generally can be involved with buying and organizing office and clinic supplies.

Each of the six office personnel people has one or more primary responsibilities; however, all associates of the personnel help you whenever necessary with patient files, insurance processing, and appointment processing. In addition with their regular responsibilities, all six office personnel are involved in the prep of patient statements at the end of every month.

New Century Health Clinic’s office administrator, Anita Davenport, lately asked permission to hire yet another office clerk because she feels the current staff can’t deal with the growing workload. New Century Health Clinic, Case Study.The affiliates discussed Anita’s request during a recent meeting. They were not stunned that the office staff was sensing overwhelmed by the constantly growing workload.

Because the medical center was busier plus more profitable than ever, they all arranged that New Century could afford to hire another office worker. Dr. Jones then developed another idea. He suggested that they check out the opportunity of computerizing New Century’s office systems. Dr. Jones said that a computerized system could well keep an eye on patients, appointments, charges, and insurance promise control and reduce paperwork. All the associates were thinking about the possibilities and voted to follow through to the advice. Dr. Jones agreed to direct the job.

Because no person in the staff experienced computer experience, Dr. Jones made a decision to hire a specialist to study the current office systems and recommend a plan of action. Several friends advised you as somebody who has extensive experience with computerized business

1. Based on the given situation above, what sorts of questions might you ask to evaluate the original feasibility of the project information, does indeed the project seem feasible? [25 markings]
2. Describe what will be the plan of action if New Century Health Medical clinic management decided to contract your services to perform a preliminary research? [25 marks]
3. What types of information is needed when you get started the preliminary analysis? From whom will you obtain it? What techniques do you want to utilization in your fact-finding?

INTRODUCTION

The New century health center is a fitness and health centre which is well-known and accepted in Fullerton, Carlifornia. The major top priority of the posted clinic earlier on, is to focus on preventive medicine giving supporting hands to patients in retaining and monitoring their health, keeping their level of fitness and medical position balanced.

But it has become a necessity and a “must look into” situation concerning the work load and over tense working conditions which the staffs have to face because, they can’t run using their company tasks. In such circumstances like this, the clinic needs to change its total standard system of procedure from manual administration /managerial form to computerized management form that will enhance the efficiency and services of the center and also save work time.New Century Health Clinic, Case Study.

In the stated situation above, an IT advisor is been required to develop the new computerized information system. Whereby the given system will be easier to change and also user-friendly in assisting the clinic’s entire management design and functions including the future expansion of the clinic. First of all in order to build up the clinic’s new system, the IT advisor should be able to analyse the issue or problem been encountered before taking essential steps in creating a final system that complies with the requirements of most end-users.

Based on the given scenario above, what sorts of questions might you ask to examine the original feasibility of the project information, will the project appear feasible?

RESPONSE

Feasibility study, as we all know, is simply known as series of test been performed to the system question/ requirements to check and determine whether it is ideal and convenient to carry on or proceed further on with the introduction of the given system.

Therefore, to carry on with such initial feasible study, the machine analyst (SA) or IT expert must interview the end-user by requesting important and relevant questions which can make a great impact or effect on the operational, complex and economic feasibilities to be known by urging the IT advisor to consider decisions which the system project will follow another steps to build up or improve effectively. New Century Health Clinic, Case Study. Else, the total work will be finished.

1. What exactly are the problems being confronted using the existing manual system?
2. How does indeed the medical clinic manage all public works using the manual system?
3. How will the medical center manage all formal works if the new system is not applied?
4. Are the staffs/ end-users of new computerized system in your center computer literates?
5. Dose the new computerized system donate to all depts. And goals of the clinic?
6. How would the new computerized system enhance or solve problems taking place with the manual system?
7. Does the new system have direct contribution to the clinic’s business objectives?

By asking questions like this, the necessity of putting into action or growing new system can be evaluated or assessed. However, to be more wide-ranging and fluent in the total feasibility of the proposed job, more questions have to be asked concerning the operational, technological and cost-effective feasibility.

Operational feasibility:

1. Do the whole management and users of the new system support the task? New Century Health Clinic, Case Study.
2. Do the users notice the need for change of current manual system?
3. Will the new system reduce labor force?
4. Is the manual system interactive and also being practised effectively by the users?
5. What would be the next thing for damaged employees if labor force reduction occurs?

Technical Feasibility

1. Can the medical clinic manage the needed hardware, software, and network resources to use the computerized system?
2. Does the center have the required technical knowledge?
3. How can the center acquire the technical knowledge if they do not have?

Economical Feasibility

1. May be the advantage of the new system outweighing the approximated costs?
2. What will be the probable personal savings and costs for acquiring, installing and lastly working the new system?
3. Does the current problem have any significance?
4. Are there any intangible factors like patient satisfaction, center image etc. ?
5. Will the system requirements outcome be a sound business investment?

Does the task seem feasible?

From the question being asked above, scheduled to relevant aspects, the initial feasibility of the task been complete can be assessed easily and effectively. It really is expected that the aforementioned questions about the feasibilities are well-answered that enhance to build up the new computerized system for the clinic.New Century Health Clinic, Case Study. Therefore, from the answers to the already asked questions as well as the given information in the situation, it is grasped that the task of new system development for the New Century Health Clinic is quite possible.

Describe what will be the program of action if New Century health Center management made a decision to contract your services to execute a preliminary investigation?

RESPONSE

The system requirements from the New Century Health Center is totally possible. In order to continue the job some investigations have to be carried out for studying the system request and then for suggesting the specific action. This is called preliminary investigation. To execute the preliminary investigation, the steps listed below will be used: but, before starting the investigation, connections with Professionals and users are prompted: in this particular phase, it needs to meet the clinic doctors, Professionals, Staffs and users to describe the detailed responsibilities, answer questions and request comments of the task.

The project will bring a significant change in the center after development. The users, staffs and doctors might be curious, regarding the changes or they could even resist it.

• • UNDERSTANDING THE SITUATION OR OPPORTUNITY:

In the first strategy, the business account and business model will be developed where the business process and functions will be detailed. That is where the main problem or operations of the medical clinic may be understood. Along the way carrying out this process the new system request may not expose the essential problems of the clinic or may be, the proposed system can affect the total clinic’s procedure and system. To eliminate these problems, it must need to comprehend the systems need and its own opportunity of the job accessible.

• Define the job opportunity and constraints:

• Internal vs. exterior constrains
• Present vs. Future Constrains
• Mandatory vs. Desirable Constrains etc.

in order to avoid misunderstanding and future problems I would lay down a piece of advice insisting that the job opportunity and constrains are been identified previously.

• Performing fact-finding:

• Interviews
• Questionnaires and surveys
• Review current documentation
• Analyse company chart
• Observe operation

• Estimate time and cost to keep development:

The in depth time and cost estimation for the further development period and the entire task will be developed with some important issues, so that the clinic’s doctor and manager can understand the full total cost and time which will be effective for financial feasibility.

Following the previous four step of primary investigation, the full total feasibility of the project been completed will be motivated in this specific stage.

in the ultimate stage, a preliminary investigation report will be prepared to management which include the evaluation of the machine requirements, the estimation of the full total cost and benefits like the recommendation of control to next phase named system analysis.

What types of information is needed when you start the preliminary investigation? From whom will you obtain it? What techniques do you want to utilization in your fact-finding? [20 marks]

Response

• Operational Feasibility
• Technical Feasibility
• Economical Feasibility

Some more info like-

• Clinic’s track record and overview
• Information about the Doctors, nurses, manager and staffs
• The project’s priority
• Benefits of the new computerized system
• Effect of the new system in the medical clinic etc.

• 4 doctors (with 2 founders)
• 3 nurses
• 4 physical Therapists
• 1 office manager
• 5 office staff

To gain the mandatory information for beginning the primary investigations, it required that you meet with these 17 manpower i. e. the clinic’s doctors, nurses, physical therapists, director, and staffs of the clinic. In the assembly, by asking questions and collecting some documents, related to the mandatory information or further inspection (if need arises), whereby the fundamental or wanted information can be collected.

In the primary investigation stage, fact-finding is an essential step. From the many fact-finding techniques, any one or even more techniques can be used for fact-finding. With appropriate and suited approach, the needed information for system request exploration can be accumulated. Regarding New Century Health Clinic, I would somewhat say ‘Interview’ is a good fact-finding approach.

An Interview is a planned meeting with any person during which the mandatory information can be acquired in-depth from that person. This is actually the primary approach to acquiring information during initial investigation stage where in fact the reason for interview is to discover facts of the proposed task.

• The amount of manpower of the medical center is really small (17 people only). That’s the reason, you won’t be frustrating and affordable.
• It will be possible here to ask necessary and effective questions to person by person as well as listen carefully the answers.
• It may also be possible to achieve every person’s own view about the current and new system proposed. New Century Health Clinic, Case Study.
• It has chance to do open-ended questions as well as a group of questionnaires on a same topic to the every person, so that personal view(s) on a single issue also with their own idea can be confirmed.
• The trustworthiness of the systems request can be measured properly from the interviewing of folks personally.

It would be the very best technique for acquiring all the mandatory information from the personnel of the medical center. However, in this initial stage, to save lots of time and cost, it will take interview of the two founder doctors, the professionals and the five staffs first. Most of all, interviews can be carried out on the remaining workers if need develops.

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Conclusions:

The New Century Health Center is suffering from problems to make use of the manual system because of their office works. As a competent and user-friendly substitute, the medical clinic management likes to use computerized system. As an IT expert, a new computerized system for this center will be developed in this project by carrying out all the principal steps like evaluation and understanding the task, feasibility study, primary inspection, fact-finding etc. It is expected that the proposed new computerized system task, finally, will perform properly and effectively for the New Century Health Center that will assist the clinic’s management system to do their regular work properly with an increase of efficiency

References:

1. [WIK08] Wikipedia (2008), Feasibility study – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Feasibility_study
2. [BLU07] Blurtit (2007), What exactly are the essential questions for feasibility analysis?- The key questions for feasibility review? http://www. blurtit. com/q393090. html
3. [McG97] Mcgraw-Hill (1997), Avison, D. E. and Shah, H. U. , THE INFO Systems Development Life Pattern: AN INITIAL Course in Information Systems, McGraw-Hill International Editions, 1997, Web pages 72 and 92-99.

Appendix:

As the actual fact finding techniques for the brand new Century Health Medical center task, another two techniques can be used with the interviewing. Both of these techniques are Current documentation Review and Observe Current Businesses.

Review Current Documents:

It is an activity where the current system paperwork of the business is reviewed to understand the way the current system is working. For the clinic’s documents, it can be out of date. So, at the paperwork receiving time, it will check with the clinic’s individuals that it is accurate and complete of information.

Observe Current Functions:

In this process, the normal working method of the worker can be looked at. The staffs of the medical clinic happens to be doing the all the state work manually. In cases like this, their working treatment, input and productivity of the work, working time and effort etc should observe.

These two techniques are not time consuming and affordable. Nevertheless, by doing both of these, the fact-finding level could be more resourceful as well as it will be helpful to understand the system request’s reliability. New Century Health Clinic, Case Study.