A classification of health computer systems and how it could help in deciding investment requirements

Investment in information technology by the NHS is reaching unprecedented levels. This is true throughout the service, from the highly publicized district information systems and hospital information support systems to the investment of GPs in microcomputers. To place all these system developments in context, Peter Cross considers the changes in the structure of health computing in the 1980s and sets out a methodology for assessing both the need for computer systems and their success.