title: Supporting ad-hoc queries in an integrated clinical database.
abstract: Whether caring for patients or conducting research, medical decision-makers need access to clinical data. To fulfill that need, commercial software developers have produced a wide range of database query tools that differ greatly in functionality and cost. Generally, tools that have a greater ability to conceal database complexity from the user also require more effort for administrative setup. We describe a cost-effective, commercially-available query tool that requires no special setup to perform most simple queries, yet can be customized to satisfy users' more complex querying requirements.
authors.affiliation: Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Steib
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Reichley
authors.forename: S T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: McMullin
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Marrs
authors.forename: T C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Bailey
authors.forename: W C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Dunagan
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Kahn
mesh_terms: D016303:Clinical Pharmacy Information Systems; D005103:Expert Systems; D006751:Hospital Information Systems; D006801:Humans; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval; D018511:Systems Integration; D014584:User-Computer Interface