Clinical Practice Applications: Community-based

Abstract

Community health agencies in general, and nursing in particular, have been slow to take advantage of computer technology beyond the mere collection of financial and statistical information. Saba and Levine (1981) report that an evaluation, done in 1976, of approximately 4500 community health agencies in the United States revealed that only 60 agencies had operational, computerized management information systems. Almost all of the 60 systems were designed to collect “financial or statistical information that focused on the home nursing visit.” The data being collected by these systems could not measure how the client was affected by the nursing care he received nor could it “describe the patient or the care rendered.” In this survey of community health care agencies, systems that were patient oriented were not found, even though patient records contained data on needs, progress, care, and outcomes.