Journal of Systems and Information Technology

Mark Taylor; Emma Higgins; Paulo Lisboa

2012 Journal of Systems and Information Technology

doi: 10.1108/13287261211255310

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the development and evaluation of a geographical information system (GIS) testing framework that was used to test a fire prevention support GIS. Design/methodology/approach – A year‐long case study was undertaken concerning the testing of a fire prevention support GIS in a UK fire and rescue service. Findings – The GIS testing framework developed involved testing the different components of a GIS, testing their interactions, and then testing the system as a whole. Since GISs contain different components such as spatial analyses and map‐based output, this supports the adoption of a different testing framework compared to existing types of information systems. Research limitations/implications – GISs will typically be used by organisations for decision making. Clearly if the information presented by a GIS is inaccurate, unrepresentative, or unreliable, then the decision‐making process can be undermined. Practical implications – This is particularly important with regard to GISs used by emergency services (such as the fire and rescue service studied) where lives could potentially be put at risk by erroneous information provided by such systems. Originality/value – Previous research had indicated that GISs may be inadequately tested. The framework developed for GISs testing provided a systematic testing approach, reducing the likelihood of errors in such systems.

Kituyi G. Mayoka; Agnes S. Rwashana; Victor W. Mbarika; Stephen Isabalija

2012 Journal of Systems and Information Technology

doi: 10.1108/13287261211255329

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for designing sustainable telemedicine information systems in developing countries. Design/methodology/approach – Both quantitative and qualitative research methods were used. Primary data were collected from two hospitals in Uganda using a self‐administered questionnaire and an interview guide. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze survey data, while content analysis method was used to analyze interview responses. The framework was developed based on Hevner et al. 's design science framework. Findings – The key requirements for designing sustainable telemedicine information systems in developing countries were identified as the need for speed, ease of use and affordability. Research limitations/implications – This study was theoretical in nature. Although primary data were used, the researchers were unable to carry out a series of practical tests of this framework with prototype systems on a cross‐section of users. Practical implications – Design and sustainability of telemedicine information systems is still a big challenge to most developing countries, despite its wide usage in the developed countries. While various telemedicine frameworks exist, not much has been done to adequately address the issue of design for sustainability. This paper proposes an appropriate framework that will guide telemedicine information systems designers on designing telemedicine systems that are sustainable in local conditions of developing countries. Originality/value – The main contribution of this paper is in the area of information systems design for sustainability, from a developing country perspective. The paper also extends on the constructs of design science research theory and shows how they can be applied in information systems design and evaluation.

Alon E. Hasgall

2012 Journal of Systems and Information Technology

doi: 10.1108/13287261211255338

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine whether working environments possessing characteristics of a complex adaptive systems (CAS), such as organizational social networks (SNs), will be perceived by the individual worker as contributing to working efficiency. The author tested whether SNs increase the workers' sharing of knowledge, sensitivity to environmental changes and synchronization of resource, which contribute to the autonomic ability to create solutions according to changing demands in turbulent environments. Design/methodology/approach – A research questionnaire distributed online assessed the views and behaviors of 94 subjects regarding SNs. An index was formed for each of the four CAS variables (Goal compliance; Situational sensitivity; Integration of information; and Resource synchronization) to evaluate how the subjects perceive SN effectiveness. Findings – A significant positive correlation was found between the degree of contribution to organizational working processes and the variables “Situational sensitivity” and “Integration of information”. This suggests that SNs allow workers to increase the degree of sensitivity to environmental changes; and that SNs allow a high degree of integration of information between the worker and other workers. Originality/value – The utilization of SNs in organizations may allow quick and direct transfer of information between workers and answer immediate demands and requirements. Thus, organizations that are required to adapt to turbulent environments with high uncertainty factors and strong competition may benefit if their workers utilize SNs effectively. It can be concluded that SNs can be used as a friendly platform for the knowledge workers to update, be updated, sense environmental changes and integrate information in cooperation with other workers.

S.L. Ting; W.H. Ip; Albert H.C. Tsang; George T.S. Ho

2012 Journal of Systems and Information Technology

doi: 10.1108/13287261211255347

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show how a clinical decision support system can help in prescription and knowledge acquisition processes. Design/methodology/approach – An integrated electronic medical records system (iEMRS) is designed to enhance the decision support quality in prescription. Findings – By evaluating the system performance through 135 prescription records collected from a Hong Kong medical organization, iEMRS shows a satisfactory result in suggesting medicines that is properly the same as the decisions made by the physicians. Originality/value – Compared with the static clinical guidelines built (manually) in the traditional clinical decision support system, knowledge in iEMRS is generated by the knowledge discovery result from professional experiences of various physicians and patient histories, which are more dynamic in nature. A treatment algorithm, designed in data mining technique, is introduced to improve information management in medical organizations by integration of decision support capability and EMRS, and supplement the deficiencies of traditional clinical decision support system.

Faruq A. Al‐Omari; Osama D. Al‐Khaleel; Ghassan A. Rayyashi; Sameh H. Ghwanmeh

2012 Journal of Systems and Information Technology

doi: 10.1108/13287261211255356

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop an innovative information hiding algorithm. Design/methodology/approach – The proposed algorithm is based on image histogram statistics. Cumulative‐peak histogram regions are utilized to hide multiple bits of the secret message by performing histogram bin substitution. The embedding capacity, otherwise known as payload, and peak signal to noise ratio (PSNR), as well as security, are the main metrics used to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm. Findings – According to the obtained results, the proposed algorithm shows high embedding capacity and security at comparable PSNR compared with existing hiding information techniques. Originality/value – The simplicity, security, random distribution of embedding pixels, and on‐demand high capacity are the key advantages of the proposed approach.

Hakim Bendjenna; Pierre‐Jean Charre; Nacer Eddine Zarour

2012 Journal of Systems and Information Technology

doi: 10.1108/13287261211255365

Purpose – Many problems in science and engineering fields involve decision making. Usually these decision‐making processes are based on several criteria that represent various experts' knowledge. Stakeholder prioritization is useful for assisting in decision‐making situations where various stakeholders have competing interests, resources are limited, and stakeholder requirements must be appropriately balanced. When these conflicts arise it is important to the success of the organization that it has prioritized each stakeholder according to the situation. To date, few researchers tried to resolve this question, mostly are based on intuitive and very simple reasoning methods which are error prone. The purpose of this paper is to propose a multi‐criteria decision analysis process to help decision makers when evaluating and prioritizing stakeholders. Design/methodology/approach – In this process, Mitchell et al. 's model is used for identifying criteria on which stakeholders will be evaluated and the fuzzy Choquet integral as an aggregation operator. This research also tested and discussed the proposal using a case study from Toulouse city subway. Findings – The results show the applicability of this process and the effectiveness of using the fuzzy Choquet integral than a traditional multi‐criteria evaluation method for human subjective evaluation, or when criteria are not mutually independent. Research limitations/implications – The highly subjective nature of criteria weights and rapid elicitation can lead to questions of validity. Also, results are not always widely accepted. Originality/value – The paper is original in considering the stakeholder prioritization problem as a multi‐criteria decision analysis problem; using a simple and well‐known model to classify stakeholders, i.e Mitchell et al. 's model; and in using Choquet integral as an aggregation operator which allows considering interaction between criteria.