Performance evaluation of hospital relational database systems.

Performance is one of the principal concerns when considering the utility of database systems in a hospital environment. An evaluation of the performance characteristics of the new user-friendly type of 'relational' hospital database systems and a comparison with a number of possible alternatives is attempted in this article. The overall objective is to test whether such systems are operationally viable in a real-life hospital environment, study the price paid for the convenience offered to the users, and test whether these systems could become acceptable as the basis for the implementation of integrated hospital information systems. The study provides some experimental evidence on the computer resources required and the relationship between the complexity of a query and the times and resources required to process it. Based on the results obtained, a conclusion is finally drawn on the acceptability of the performance characteristics of such systems and the needs for further improvement.