ABSTRACT
Computer systems in hospitals are in evolution. The first generation of such systems was known as Hospital Information Systems (HIS) or Hospital Information Support Systems. The Electronic Patient Record depends on the pre-existence of a basic HIS, but is much more sophisticated. It is capable of being populated in real time with data at each stage of the clinical process, over an episode, or series of episodes, of a patient's care. In a hospital ward a main determinant of culture is the clinical condition of the patient and the consequences this has for the customs, practices, and expectations of staff. In the medical ward, patients tended to stay only a short time, and by the time they were leaving other things were preoccupying the staff. A patient walking out was not noticed. It has a number of functions: to remind the consultant about the patient; to find out what is happening with the patient.
