Creative Blog

Information systems are part of everyday life and is evident from the above photographs that none of us can live without it from swiping at stores. To swiping in at the gym. We make use of information systems to watch television, catching up on our daily shows. This blog concerns itself with the amount of information systems and supporting technologies I could identify throughout the past week. I have taken pictures to illustrate the forms that they take. Secondly, this blog will look at how South African citizens can benefit more from information systems and what is currently being done to enhance the adoption of information systems within South Africa. Lastly, it will venture into the future of technology within higher education in South Africa. 

The information systems that I have encountered this week has varied from cameras, to computers  and smart boards at school. There has been several different systems that make use of different operating systems. Click on link for information systems used this week. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ay74tFTp5Is

South Africa can use information systems and technologies to improve healthcare services. Currently, they are using a paperback system at hospitals which is time consuming. They should venture into an online system that allows nursing staff to capture data online and directly onto the system. That way they are able to control and manage severity of cases as well as linking wards, pharmacies for medication needed, as well as updating patient profiles, informing doctors of patient progress and provide optimal care. “A currently fashionable technological debate revolves around the use of open source and free software, and indeed it is clear that some developing countries, such as Brazil, are taking strategic initiatives to encourage the open source route.” (Walsham and Sahay, 2006, p.11). Hospitals should use open systems to aid in optimizing the health administration process. They can make use of this system to improve and constantly change their system to aid change if any epidemics took place. There are several ways in which we can use information systems to improve hospital assisting times and save lives.

Another method was the way social grants are paid. It started as taking your identity document and going to collect the cash at various locations. Then it moved to a card system where you could collect your grants at any time. At any store that allows it to be withdrawn. I think it could be moved forward even further by paying it to people directly into bank accounts and helping them avoid queues. Also, it saves time for the elderly. More government departments should move to electronic systems to save paper and become more efficient and effective.  

The future of technology within higher institutions needs to be improved. In the midst of the uncertainty of fees must fall protests that seem to occur yearly more and more funds needs to be allocated to rebuilding infrastructure and replacing equipment that had been broken down. Less money is allocated to upgrading and replacing older systems with more advanced, innovative information systems. Many universities always try to be as progressive as possible to make the studying experience interesting and create lifelong learning students. Institutions of higher learning are doing the most they can with small budgets. They try to maintain computer labs across the campuses. They require various information systems across campuses all being used for a different purposes. Perhaps in future instead of sitting down and writing a paper institutions can look into creating online examinations where students use labs and type examinations at given times. The institution can also create a computerized system that has a memo with a list of possible answers to mark the online script almost immediately. This will generate results a faster. The future of technology in higher institution has come a long way but can be improved.