We Talk Coding
Question about computer databases?
I have to write a paper comparing two or three database systems that can be used in a hospital setting. These databases have to be able to handle not only text, but images. Everything I've looked up on the Internet is just confusing me even more. I don't understand all this mumbo jumbo! What kinds of databases do hospitals use?
Public Comments
- Large portions of the medical industry relies on a programming language called MUMPS: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MUMPS Which provides most data storage needs. More modern systems most likely rely on commercial database backends such as SQL Server, Oracle, IBM DB2, and MySQL. Commercial relational database products like the ones I mentioned generally store binary data (such as images) into "blob" fields in the database. The same databases have support for all sorts of text storage as well. I don't really know how you are going to get a paper out of this. Almost any commercial database with replication and clustering abilities is capable of handling the data needs of a hospital (or pretty much any organization for that matter).
- Most hospitals, and businesses for that matter, use RDBMS (Relational Database Management Systems) products such as Oracle, Sybase, SQLServer and even in some smaller cases and applications, MS Access. Some of the better products I have seen are: PiMS - Patient Infromation Management Systems from PDM Productive Data Management in CA. Soarian - from Siemens AG; this utilizes syngo Suite product for imaging, workflow, diagnostics and therapeutics Here is a 'short list' of other systems and providers: http://www.2020software.com/software/display.asp?tMethodID=35&tMethod=category&tse=Google&tst=medical+software+B&CMP=KNC-Google Good luck on the paper!
