ABSTRACT
Codifying laboratory information in a standardized form following the HL7 protocol will allow test results for the same patient to be collated from several laboratories into a single regional (or eventually, national) computer data base. Currently, networks of hospitals are rapidly forming to remain competitive under the managed care model for providing health care. As these hospital networks evolve, there will be strong motivation to integrate the computer-based medical information systems that serve them. Therefore, we can expect the formation of large health care computer networks in the near future. These networks will operate at least at the regional level and perhaps also at the national level.
