Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to R D Aller.
This article reviews the issues involved in introducing or upgrading computer automation in the clinical laboratory. The strengths and weaknesses of computers and computer systems are discussed. Information on selecting and educating the laboratory team who will use the computer and analyzing the needs of a particular laboratory is included.
The primary product of the laboratory is information. Greater attention should be devoted to how laboratory reports are presented to ensure that information is being conveyed effectively to the clinician. Different reporting techniques, including test-by-test, interim, cumulative, and completed accession reports, are appropriate for different patient populations and physician needs. This article includes many suggestions for improved layout and content of laboratory reports, including the use of PostScript-based laser printers, as well as display work-stations and voice response.
The steps involved in acquiring a computer system, from writing the request for a proposal to signing the contract, are discussed. Guidelines for selecting a system include information on the merits of different hardware and software available for use in the laboratory.
Optimum productivity and performance are attained by permitting each functional division of a hospital to choose the optimum information system for its own needs. Quality patient care depends on the ability to coordinate and communicate the information generated in each department to the patient's bedside. Communication standards are now available to facilitate the melding of these two disparate requirements.
An on-line computer-assisted pathology encoding and reportying system (CAPER) has been developed by the Department of Pathology and Laboratory of Computer Science of the Massachusetts General Hospital for a department of surgical pathology that processes more than 25,000 specimens yearly. CAPER performs clerical functions, including the accessioning of specimens, monitoring their state of completion, production of log books, billing, statistics, and transfer of diagnoses to other hospital departments. It also permits instantaneous display of all diagnoses rendered within two years, printout within 24 hours of all older diagnoses for any patient, and retrieval of all specimens with any given diagnosis, further defined by any data item (e.g., age) stored in the computer file.
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A system utilizing inexpensive computer hardware to produce high-quality cytology report and to provide an extensive, semi-automated follow-up system is described. Key features of the reports generated are emphasized. The system uses the Bethesda System nomenclature for reporting cytologic findings to a wide range of physicians, from general practitioners to gynecologists to subspecialists in gynecologic oncology.