Medical Information Computer System KSIMPA supporting work of allergy outpatient clinic. Aims and features of the system

Please note: This abstract was written by Dr. Spiewak in 2004, and is not a translation of the Polish summary as it appears in the original article from 1992, but a presentation of the content from a historical perspective.

In the early 1990's, the typical manner of data acquisition and storage was with the means of paper records. Even with the best organisation of the files, such data were difficult to search and summarise. This kind of databases, consisting of dozens of thousands records could also be a valuable source of scientific information if more easily accessible. Therefore, the authors undertook an attempt to computerise the Regional Outpatient Allergy Clinic in Katowice, Poland. The article describes a small computer net consisting of 4 IBM PC AT computers connected through ArcNet cards, which was the environment for an originally developed software. Besides the patient database function, the software also contained modules with guidelines on diagnosis of allergic diseases and dosage information on allergological drugs. This was one of the first attempts to computerise an allergy department in Poland.

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