Basic Overview of
Information Technology and
uses in Medicine and
Dentistry
Dr Ebtissam Al-Madi
Basic Overview of
Information Technology and
uses in Medicine and
Dentistry
1. Types of Computers
2. Data Storage in Computers
3. Computer Hardware and Software
4. Computer Networks
5. Software Engineering
6. Challenges to Biomedical Computing
Informatics is not about
technology
• Technology is essential for acquisition and
use of the focus, information
• Decisions about technology impact how
information is managed
• Focus should be user-centered, not
technology centered
• “Old” technology is not necessarily bad if it
still meets
• needs and is supportable
• “New” technology can introduce new
problems
Types of computers
• Most powerful
– Mainframes – largest and most expensive
computers that serve many users
– Supercomputers – powerful computers
designed for massive processing and
computation
• Servers
– Computers that serve many users and handle
many transactions
– Any computer from a PC to a mainframe can
act as a server
• Personal computers (PCs)
– Desktop and laptop and Apple Macintosh
computers
– Continue to increase in power, especially
when on computer networks
– Have essentially become a commodity
– Intel shipped its one billionth computer chip in
2003 (Intel, 2003)
• Tablet computers
– Screen and power of laptop computer but
even more portable
– Touted as beneficial in health care but
penetration remains modest (Malkary, 2004)
“Computers” are getting smaller
• Personal digital assistants (PDAs)
– Hand-held computers with high portability
– Most popular platforms are Palm OS and
Windows forHandhelds (Windows Mobile)
– Primary form of input is mostly hand-writing
recognition
– Increasingly have wireless network capability
– Highly popular among clinicians but limited by
screen size,
• Cell phones
– Increasingly have cameras, Internet access, etc.
– Value outweighs possible risk in health care
settings
How powerful are computers
getting?
• Everything from speed to size to cost per unit of
power doubles every 18 Months.
(Moore, 1965; Intel, 2004)
Data Storage in Computers
Virtually all modern computers are digital, as opposed to
analog
• Digital means that
– Most fundamental unit is discrete
– Unit is the binary digit or bit, which can assume the values 0
or 1
– Or off/on, false/true, etc..
– A byte is a sequence of 8 bits (and can take on 28 or 256
values)
• In contrast, analog systems have values on continuous
scale
• Examples of digital vs. analog
– Timekeeping
– Calculators vs. slide rules
– Audio – LPs vs. CDs
Digital concepts – data
representation
• Bit sequences are used to represent
numbers, text, images, and program
instructions
• All these sequences are stored in
memory and architecture determines
which is which.
• Integer numbers are represented by
straight sequences of bits.
• Text is represented by codes (Unicode)
• Images are represented by pixels
Is a picture worth a thousand
words? Compare storage sizes
Text
• For text, each
character is one
byte
• A single page may
have an average of
50 characters per
line over its 60 lines,
taking up about
3,000 bytes
Image
• A high-quality
display of a page
requires about 1,200
by 800 pixels, taking
up (in B&W) around
120,000 bytes
• Adding 8-bit color
would increase the
size to nearly one
million bytes
Digital points of reference
• Chest x-ray
1200 x 800 pixels= 960,000 bytes
• Average-sized text book=1-5 megabytes
• Library of Congress= 20 terabytes
Sizes of storage media
• Floppy disks held 1,440K
• CD disks hold 640-700 megabytes
• Flash (solid-state) memory holds 1-20
gigabytes
• DVD disks (current standard) hold 4.2
gigabytes
• Hard disks hold in 100s of gigabytes
range
• Typical mainframe and server hard disk
terabyte and beyond range
Computer Hardware and
Software
Hardware
• Physical parts of
Computer
– Central processing
unit
(CPU)
– Memory
– Auxiliary storage
– Input and output
devices
Software
• Instructions for
computer
– Operating system
– Applications
– Programming
languages and
development tools
Auxiliary storage
Active
• Active storage is
used for information
needed all the time
Archival
• Archival storage is
information needed
less urgently, e.g.,
backup or older
information
Input and output devices
•
•
•
•
Input devices
Most common
device is the
keyboard
Mouse and trackpad
Pen input
Voice input
Output devices
• Monitor and printer
• Computer speech
Computer software – operating
systems
• Provide file, display,
networking, etc.,
services to users and
programmers
• Users get file
management, set-up
and maintenance,
utilities
• Programmers get
standard interface to
various services such
as file access,
display, network
connection, etc.
• Some operating
systems
–
–
–
–
–
–
Windows
Macintosh OS
Unix
Open-source Linux
Novell Netware
PalmOS, Windows for
Handhelds (Windows
Mobile)
Programming languages
• Computer programs run in
machine language, the
code of bits that gives
instructions for moving
and manipulating data
• “High level” computer
languages operate at a
higher level of abstraction,
hiding the complexity of
moving and manipulating
data
• C, C++ – used in most
modern applications
• MUMPS – used in many
early medical applications
• Basic – used to be
common in PCs
• Visual Basic used across
Microsoft applications
• Perl, Python, and others –
“scripting” languages for
Unix and Web
• Java – attempt to create
standard language for
Web applications
Open-source software
• Freely available and is
managed by some sort
of standardizing entity
• Examples: Linux,
mySQL, openEHR
Open source software in
health care
• General
– www.sourceforge.net
• Medical
– Veterans Administration
system Vista –
http://www1.va.gov/CPR
Sdemo/
– OpenEHR –
www.openehr.org
– www.freemedsoftware.or
g
– www.linuxmednews.org
Computer networks
• Before Internet era, computers were
either
– Standalone (in the case of PCs)
– Hard-wired terminals connected to the
central unit (in the case of mainframes)
• Most rapidly evolving and expanding
technology today is the computer
network
The Internet
• Worldwide computer network bound together
by TCP/IP
• Not a single network, but many “internetworks”
• Every device on the Internet has an Internet
Protocol (IP) address
• Internet-related terms
– Intranet – Network local to organization that uses
Internet technology
– Extranet – Network limited to associates of an
organization
– Virtual private network (VPN) – the “new” WAN,
allows distant network to appear local
Software applications on the
Internet
•
•
•
•
Electronic mail
World Wide Web
Instant messaging
Application service provider (ASP)
applications – store application and data
remotely
• PC is a terminal:
– Advantage – connect from anywhere on
network, up to- date version, data integrity
– Disadvantage – constrained by network
bandwidth and availability
• Internet and broadband use is higher
among
– Rich vs. poor
– Younger vs. older
– Developed vs. developing countries
– Urban vs. rural
– Caucasian and Asian vs. other ethnic
groups
• Use growing proportionately among
various ethnic and age groups
Networking Health
• Nothing about health applications is
unique, i.e., we don’t need a separate
“health Internet,” but current infrastructure
is inadequate for many applications and
priorities
• “Availability” of networks is more important
than “bandwidth” for most clinical
applications
– Can be compromised by the failure of
individual components
– Overload of system
– Hostile attacks (hacking, viruses)
Important issues for system
design
• Quality and style of interface
– Must be clear and consistent
• Convenience and accessibility
– Devices where needed and in adequate numbers
• Speed and response time
– Essential for busy clinicians
• Reliability
– Crucial as we become more dependent on them
• Security
– Essential as amount of data and connectivity grows
• Integration
– Interoperability of systems and data essential
Challenges to Biomedical
Computing
• Software reliability and safety
• Software bugs
• General system security
• Spam email
• Passwords
• Persistent data
• Intellectual property and patents
This weeks assignments
Log on to
http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa/ealmadi/182DEN/default.as
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1. View this lecture online for review.
2. Read article
3. Participate in discussion.
4. Submit Homework
5. Answer Quiz.
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• Thank you
– Dr Ebtissam Al-Madi
– ealmadi@ksu.edu.sa