Exercise1

Please answer the following question(s). If the assessment includes multiple-choice questions, click the "Submit Answers" button when you have completed those questions.

1.

Go to bottom of question.

Exercise 1: Thinking in the New Way

This exercise is intended to help you start thinking about developing a Software Project Management Plan (SPMP) associated with a complex project. Your answers should be based on:

• What you have learned so far in Unit 1 of SSD10.

• The courses you have taken prior to SSD10.

• Your own intuition and experience.

Description

Your company, RealSoftware Inc., was given a contract to develop an Integrated Hospital Management System for the Ben County Hospital. It is a medium-sized hospital with various departments such as radiology, pediatrics, Ob/Gyn, surgery, cardiology, etc.

Currently the hospital uses a system that was developed in the 1970s. The system runs on a main frame computer. It is:

• Monolithic.

• Proprietary.

• Implemented in a language that is obsolete and with code that is hard to maintain.

Additionally, each department in the hospital has its own computer system for maintaining its records. There are also paper records throughout the hospital. The CEO of the hospital has specified the following features for the new system. The system should:

• Be easily accessible.

• Process various types of data such as medical images, lab results, visit records, prescription information, etc.

• Be able to access data residing in various databases.

• Make data available for anonymous studies for post analysis such as outcome analysis, epidemiological studies, and improvement of treatment protocols, etc.

Based on this information, answer the following questions. As a manager for real projects, you will often have to make similar decisions.

1. Should your system be specially developed for the Ben County hospital, or be more general so that it can be customized for other similar hospitals? Describe the pros and cons for each approach, and trade-offs in terms of cost, schedule, etc.

2. Since this project involves patient health information, you have to pay special attention to the way the data will be handled. What are the areas of concern?

3. As a manager what criteria will you specify to your software development team for the architecture of the system?

4. How will you handle the legacy patient data?

5. Will you reuse any part of the current hospital management system and its departmental systems, or develop your system from scratch? What factors will you consider for your decision?

6. What are the risks you perceive in this project? Use Table 4-1 in your textbook by Walker Royce (page 64) for risk resolution for this particular application.

7. If you want to exploit the Internet, what steps will you take? What features specified by the customer will likely be affected?

8. There is a communication revolution underway (such as mobility, wireless, etc.). How do you envision using these technologies for your system?