Public Health Service IRM

GAO reviewed the Public Health Service's (PHS) strategic information resources management (IRM) planning process, focusing on how the planning process could be improved. GAO found that: (1) PHS agencies have improved their IRM planning by emphasizing agencywide strategic planning; (2) PHS agencies need to address current and future IRM requirements and strategically position IRM to meet departmental and agency program goals; and (3) PHS needs to clearly link strategic IRM plans to strategic business plans, base strategic IRM plans on organizational needs, develop information architectures for its agencies that provide a framework to manage and use information and IRM resources, perform periodic formal assessments to identify information needs, and determine the relative costs and benefits of alternative approaches in prioritizing projects to make PHS information systems more responsive to mission needs.