[Computer-assisted documentation in upper gastrointestinal endoscopy: experiences with routine use at 3 clinics].

The introduction of powerful and inexpensive personal computers (PC) enabled us to develop a documentation system for upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. The system was programmed using the database management system dBASE III. It works on-line, and no computer knowledge or additional staff is needed to run the system. It is now routinely used in the endoscopic units of three different hospitals. Features of performance are a menu-driven data input, automatic report generation and record retrieval, listing according to different criteria as well as other dBASE III facilities. This paper deals with the quality, time effort and user acceptance of the PC-aided system in clinical routine. The analysis showed a good data quality with respect to completeness and adequate use of terminology. Reliability and validity of the documentation were satisfactory considering the methodological problems encountered at their determination. The system was generally judged useful, but time effort was increased compared to conventional documentation.