The functional analysis starts from the hospital activity to describe information
circuits that will determine IS functions and then select the functions that will
benefit from an automated and/or computerised approach.
A business process is a set of structured activities or tasks that support the
missions of an enterprise. Operational processes are directly connected with the
core business of the enterprise (i.e., the patient care for a hospital). Supporting
processes are facilitators for the operational processes (e.g., supplies, accounting,
patients’ billing or professional recruitment). Management processes are associated
with the management of the enterprise (e.g. strategic planning, financial forecasting
or research support).