Creation of personnel at the medical/computer science interface: should it be a specialty?

The development of minicomputers and microprocessors allows the paper and pencil records to be replaced by electronic records. Data from medical practice stored in paper form disappear in the jaws of office files and hospital record rooms. Only a fraction are retrieved for retrospective studies. Records kept in electronic form are immediately available and over time give the doctor a data base from which he can construct a computerized textbook describing his own practice in terms of diagnosis, treatment and outcomes. Data from the practice can even be available as a basis for clinical trials of drugs and procedures. The doctor now has a potential data base for biostatistical and epidemiologic studies relating to his practice on an ongoing basis.