Buy a book on XML Midge and then you won't have this schizoid outlook on
life :-)
Databases vs. narrative bah !! Old hat
Paul Galloway
-----Original Message-----
From: Adrian Midgley <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
Date: 02 November 1998 10:57
Subject: Hubris: file formats facilitate political direction
>Relational database management systems, and the form of records they
>encourage, promote the use of medical record systems for
>bean-counting.
>
>Providing the narrative record in format more like that of a
>word-processed document encourages its use to support the human
>qualities of the clinician.
>
>Aside from the immediate advantage that a system using one or a
>small number of files dedicated to each patient rather than
>distribiuting each patient's records among all others is
>intrinsically a movable patient record (taking with it a viewer if
>necessary to support users of other systems), it encourages
>programming to support the use of the record in the consultation
>rather than its use in administration.
>
>Searching a series of files in order to answer questions about a
>large number of patients is achievable, and although it may well be
>slower than indexed searches on currently popular databases, there
>is no obvious advantage to having a system optimised for searching
>if we are to use it as a replacement for the torrent of paper.
>
>Moving to an individual patient file will encourage the evolution of
>the EMR as a tool for those actually using in contact with patients
>rather than as a tool for those who see it as a means of examining
>others' work from the security of their adminsitrative fastness'.
>
>I move.
>--- OffRoad 1.9r registered to Adrian Midgley
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