Information systems drive health care into the 21st century.

Beyond the initial cost of upgrading and networking computer information systems, outcome measures are diminishing in cost as technological advances occur. Physicians, labs, pharmacies, teaching institutions, financial monitors, and administrative offices can be linked electronically to communicate and share information in real time. With the aid of electronic databases connected by satellite, health care systems of the future will rely on a seamless network of information sources, forming integrated delivery systems. Philosophical and control issues may always present challenges to establishing integrated delivery systems. But the advantages of an integrated delivery system, tied together by electronic management and clinical software, seem to far surpass the risks for both providers and insurers. This article explores the overwhelming benefit to physicians who wish to practice medicine with fewer of the traditional administrative burdens.