The integrated inpatient management model's clinical management information system.

The rising cost of health care has increased the call for cost control. The pressing need to control cost, coupled with the increase in managed care and prospective payment, has placed new urgency on administrators and clinicians to work collaboratively in providing efficient and effective care. We have developed the Integrated Inpatient Management Model (IIMM) to assist in this collaborative effort. We describe the IIMM's clinical information system that provides decision support to both administrators and clinicians. This clinical information system is the information backbone for the development and monitoring of practice guidelines or critical pathways. An integrated information system of this type is essential if hospitals are to prosper during the next decade.