Importance of Computers in Health Care

Pay a visit to your family doctor or the local hospital, and you'll find yourself surrounded by computerized equipment of all kinds. Computers, in fact, are making health care more efficient and accurate while helping providers bring down costs. Many different health care procedures now involve computers, from ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging, to laser eye surgery and fetal monitoring (see Fig. 1). Surgeons now can use robotic surgical devices to perform delicate operations, and even to conduct surgeries remotely. New virtual-reality technologies are being used to train new surgeons in cutting-edge techniques, without cutting an actual patient. But not all medical computers arc so high-tech. Clinics and hospitals use standard computers to manage schedules, maintain patient records, and perform billings. Many transactions between physicians, insurance companies, and pharmacies are conducted by computers, saving health care workers time to devote to more important tasks.