Simplicity Rules In Healthcare Software Development

By Author: Clinical Excellence
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Although the phrase less if more is closely related to modern architecture, you can easily apply it the hottest upcoming trend in software design and engineering.

At first glance it would seem that simplicity flies in the face of the high tech world where one often needs technical manuals to navigate the increasingly sophisticated programs and gadgets.

When asked recently if a certain feature would be possible to add to a program, a Google product development employee said that yes, it was possible, but that he wouldn't do it. The feature was too complex and would cause confusion.

This is a sea change in the high tech world. It symbolizes a new, fresh approach that is the driving force behind today's best tech products. The principles of simplicity adopted by companies such as Google will alter the balance of power in the tech industry.

The old school model

A classic example of the old way of doing things can be best illustrated with a product such as Microsoft Word.

We are talking about one of the most popular applications ever. It was one of the first word processors to feature WYSIWYG ...
... (what you see is what you get) technology, along with a toolbar. By the mid 1990's Word had delivered a knockout punch to Word Perfect as the most popular word processor.

However, as the popularity of Word grew, both Windows and Mac flooded the company with suggestions on changes that were supposed to make it better. Microsoft took many of those suggestions, and each incarnation of Word had a greater array of features than the former. Today, the application is so bloated and bogged down that even basic tasks can be difficult for an inexperienced user.

This scenario has played itself out many times over. Large products such as ERP suites and

Microsoft Office fell victim to this mentality, as well as smaller applications such as line-of-business apps, which are used extensively in niche industries such as government and health care. Even hardware has been subject to this approach to some degree. An example of this is laptops and desk tops with redundant ports, confusing buttons and unused function keys.

The ever increasing demand for computer technology resulted in these kinds of traditional tech products. The development process became inefficient with less thought dedicated to the overall design and functionality of the products. To put it simply, simplicity flew out the door.

An evolution of user experience

We return now to the phrase less is more. Call it the new mantra of building tech products. Removing redundant or rarely used features is just the opposite of the old way, where new features and functions were tacked on to the existing product. In the past, user requests were implemented that may not have reflected the larger user base. A more disciplined approach mandates moving back to the core functionality of a product and avoiding the product creep of the past.

That is the basic philosophy of our own Australia-based company, Clinical Excellence Technologies, (clinicalexcellence.com.au) which creates web solutions for critical clinical needs. This software revolution is transforming the way patient care is managed and shared among mental health professionals.

From the start of the engineering process we created the software to be so intuitive and easy-to-use that a nurse could create a comprehensive care plan for a patient with only a few clicks of the mouse. If in the past it might have taken her an hour to accomplish this task, with the self-evident software we created it can take her two minutes. This allows her to spend more time with patients and can save hospitals many hours in wasteful labor costs.

The result of this new, disciplined approach to building products is self-evident. Stripped down GUI's (graphical user interface), along with the success of products and services like iPad, Android, Gmail and Salesforce.com are becoming the standard. The self-evidence the user experiences is obvious: There is no need to consult user manual, nor is any significant training required to use those products.

As user experiences become more self-evident, the expectation for easy-to-use products will continue to grow. Product builders may have difficulty with the new discipline. Many ideas and features that in the past may have been added will now be deemed unnecessary. The discipline comes with paring down a product to its absolute core functionality.

There are many companies that do not possess the talent, corporate culture, or ability to follow-through with this kind of discipline and sophistication. Some companies, such as Nokia and BlackBerry have backward compatibility issues that are holding them back. Both of these companies are being overtaken by self-evident products such as iPhone and Android. In the case of Nokia and BlackBerry, their large, installed bases make them hesitant to iterate too quickly. The result is complex products that have many of the same issues as Microsoft Word.

There are signs though, that even companies such as Microsoft are starting to adopt the discipline necessary to produce self-evident products. Windows Phone 7 and the Bing search engine fall into the category of simpler, self-evident products. What they will ultimately do with Windows and Office is another matter, but there are signs they are moving in the right direction.

It may be tempting to think that the idea of a self-evident user experience means products will be less sophisticated or dumbed down, so to speak. Many new products will have fewer features, and the ones that will be included are going to be aimed at core functionality. At Clinical Excellence Technologies we embrace the words of Leonardo da Vinci, Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.

Clinical Excellence Technologies bring the sophistication of simplicity to healthcare software. Find out more about our mental healthcare software at http://clinicalexcellence.com.au