Computers in Medicine

Abstract

Although the computer is not new to medicine, its growing popularity within the medical community at large certainly is. Currently, computer technology is being developed and applied to the health industry at an unprecedented rate, and health-related computer technology has become a popular topic at major medical conferences and symposia. A number of professional organizations, some of international dimensions, have been formed to further the use of computer technology within the health complex. In addition, the potential commercial value of computer technology has been recognized by many organizations eager to provide services to the health industry. Perhaps the most common tasks to which computers have been applied to date in the health field are billing and accounting, particularly for ambulatory patients. At present, for example, a variety of computer-oriented billing and associated practice-management systems are used at the office level of care. Some immediate advantages in the use of these