title: Legacy systems: managing evolution through integration in a distributed and object-oriented computing environment.
abstract: Legacy systems are crucial for organizations since they support key functionalities. But they become obsolete with aging and the apparition of new techniques. Managing their evolution is a key issue in software engineering. This paper presents a strategy that has been developed at Broussais University Hospital in Paris to make a legacy system devoted to the management of health care units evolve towards a new up-to-date software. A two-phase evolution pathway is described. The first phase consists in separating the interface from the data storage and application control and in using a communication channel between the individualized components. The second phase proposes to use an object-oriented DBMS in place of the homegrown system. An application example for the management of hypertensive patients is described.
authors.affiliation: Medical Informatics Department, Broussais University Hospital, Paris.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lemaitre
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sauquet
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Fofol
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tanguy
authors.forename: F C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Jean
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Degoulet
mesh_terms: D003195:Computer Communication Networks; D003628:Database Management Systems; D006801:Humans; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D012984:Software; D018511:Systems Integration