International Information Management Corporation

Abstract: Digitization and networked computing in the healthcare sector have resulted in electronic patient records that are stored, managed and shared among different healthcare providers. In Developing Countries such systems are being considered to improve on healthcare service delivery, with the aim of nationally available patient records. To implement this, network architectures and data transfer solutions can be adapted from other contexts, such as centralised or peer-to-peer computing. However, it is not always clear that such solutions are most appropriate, especially given the unstable and limited resources of developing countries. This paper proposes that discrete event simulation can be used as the foundation of a tool to measure and evaluate the performance of algorithms and network architectures. The initial proof-of-concept tool is presented, along with how it can be used to evaluate a solution for sharing records between a group of facilities. Initial results are promising and further envisaged investigation is discussed

Evaluating Health Information Systems for Developing Countries using Simulation

Digitization and networked computing in the healthcare sector have resulted in electronic patient records that are stored, managed and shared among different healthcare providers. In Developing Countries such systems are being considered to improve on healthcare service delivery, with the aim of nationally available patient records. To implement this, network architectures and data transfer solutions can be adapted from other contexts, such as centralised or peer-to-peer computing. However, it is not always clear that such solutions are most appropriate, especially given the unstable and limited resources of developing countries. This paper proposes that discrete event simulation can be used as the foundation of a tool to measure and evaluate the performance of algorithms and network architectures. The initial proof-of-concept tool is presented, along with how it can be used to evaluate a solution for sharing records between a group of facilities