Providing Healthcare Services in the Virtual Environment

Need For Knowledge Based System

Due to the change in the life style of the people across the Globe, the nuclear family has become the order of the day. There used to be a doctor for each family when the joint family was prevalent. Most of these doctors knew the entire medical history of all the members of the family. These doctors used to organize all the medical services through their professional contacts whenever the family needed their services. The family doctor was considered as a part of the family, philosopher, and guide. The concept of ‘Family Doctor” has disappeared today. In the present scenario, hospitals are the most important element in the health care delivery system. Every time a patient or patient’s relative approaches a hospital, he or she comes with an expectation. What happens next will form an experience. A good experience may increase one’s confidence in the hospital and he/she recommends the same hospital to friends and relatives. But a bad experience may dissuade probable patients not to make use of the services provided by a particular hospital. Health problems and needs are increasing and becoming more complex. The demands and pressures on the hospitals are also increasing. Providing timely service and care is the primary responsibility of all the hospital authorities. The ability to recognize this process and to actively manage it, forms the basis for “Knowledge Based Health Care System”.

Healthcare organizations have a large volume of data which is generated by the number of transactions that take place during the services rendered to patients. One of the greatest difficulties in health care organizations is not so much in gathering data, but deciding what needs to be gathered to provide the necessary information and making sure that it is distributed to the right people at the right time and in the right form. “Knowledge Based Health Care System” will be useful in taking care of the above requirements.