4. Accumulate a Structured Data Base for Administrative Queries, Quality Assurance and Research

As with decision support, an automated system that provides the capability to store and retrieve data from a structured data base is highly dependent on the nature of the nomenclature used to capture the data. The same characteristics apply: The terms must have unique identifiers to allow coding; data quality must be supported through the attributes of clarity and non-redundancy in terms, and definitions of terms should be available to support accurate, consistent use. Since the purposes of these databases are wide-ranging, domain completeness as well as granularity are key requirements. The research system may require atomic-level data for certain purposes, while the administrative system may require that atomic-level data be rolled up into broader categories. When the nomenclatures is designed to be hierarchical, it is much easier to roll up the more granular data into groupings that make sense at the broader level. The ability to map the clinical terms to other standard classifications may be required as well.