Life Cycles, Standards, and Best Practices

[Name of the Institute]Life Cycles, Standards, and Best Practices

Systems development life cycle

Firms typically purchase packages of software that suit their business requirements. However, the development of custom applications and softwares is still in demand and highly required by enterprises. Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is one of the several approaches to developing customized applications for firms. SDLC is a highly structured process for development of custom applications and the selection of proprietary systems. In SDLC, applications are developed following a structured development process which is easily customizable to the management requirements of firms. SDLC allows organizations to insert changes into their applications in order to resolve issues according to their requirements.

SDLC is a process that is divided into a set of various phases. These phases offer a model for the lifecycle management and development of a piece of software or an application. The process of SDLC is used to frame the methods a firm would like to use for development of custom applications. The seven phases of SDLC include feasibility study, requirements definition, software and system design, implementation and unit design, integration and system testing, operation and maintenance.

In the feasibility study stage, the possibility of building a certain system is evaluated and the decision to proceed or to halt the process is taken. In the requirements definition stage, system specifications are defined after sufficient consultation with customers. In the phase of system and software design, overall system architecture and design documentation is prepared. During the implementation and unit testing stage, codes are written and a set of programs get prepared. During the integration and testing stage, programs are put together and the system is tested in order to be delivered. During the final stage of operation and maintenance, installation of system is carried out and errors are rectified. After passing all the stages, a proper customized application for the firms gets developed.

Along with developing a customized application, SDLC keeps information confidential in order to establish legal or property rights of the customized applications. Proprietary software is a computer licensed under legislative right of the software copyright holder. The proprietary information of systems is not known outside SDLC. The policy of SDLC requires it to keep confidential and secure the non-public information of the company that it possesses. The information can be sensitive information regarding financial data, strategies, plans, and trade secrets of the company. In this way, SDLC helps in selection of appropriate proprietary systems for the company.

Major types and classifications of health care information standards and the specific organizations that develop and regulate these standards

Health care information standards are classified into the following classes namely, Classification, Vocabulary, and Terminology Standards, Data Interchange Standards, Health Record Content Standards, and Federal Initiatives on Health care IT standards (Wager et.al, 2009).

Classification, Vocabulary, and Terminology Standards

One of the most significant problems in creating longitudinal electronic records of health and exchanging information related to health care is coordination of enormous amount of health care information which is generated ...