Modeling Hospital Information Systems with Petri Nets
SummaryIn the development of hospital information systems it is difficult to describe data and activities simultaneously and equivalently. Most of the methods used so far are only suitable for either data structures or functional modeling. In particular, it is not possible to comprehend the functional interdependence of hospital procedures.In this paper it is shown that Petri Nets are well suited for the development of complex software systems. Their exceptional properties are, on the one hand, the simulative capacities which allow to visualize interlinked and interdependent procedures of the real world. On the other hand, it is pointed out that Petri Nets comply with the demands of software engineering. In order to make these characteristics clear, two models from real developments are used: Firstly the organizational model of a small hospital and secondly the model of the data entry in the follow-up of tumor patients.