[The computerized medical record. From lost illusions to the hope of renewal]

Although the principle of recording and transmitting patient data is not new, the computerized medical record used in today's practice of care still does not meet the needs. We can easily - and often rightly - cast shame on the designers of those medical records and on administrators of our care institutions, but we as caregivers do need to share responsibility. If we really intend to use multiple sources of data wisely, in order to increase global health status at the individual level or for a population, we need to understand clearly the multiple dimensions of data and therefore acquire a real data culture. The revival of the medical record, for too long a source of disillusionment and burnout, is within reach especially as technical solutions appear to automate and facilitate our work of recording data in the field.