Microcomputers for analysis of emergency department function.

The Halifax Infirmary Hospital developed a system in which patient data from the emergency department were transferred from the hospital's mainframe computer to a microcomputer, under the control of staff most involved with the patient. Codes were automatically assigned to the diagnoses recorded in free text, and the accuracy of the data was verified. Emergency department staff used this system to perform audits, quality assurance, and research that would be difficult or impossible to do manually.