title: Modern image capture and data collection technology.
abstract: Computer data collection technology is intended to facilitate patient management and clinic administration. The systems should be devised for ease of usage and careful consideration should be given to the core set of data required and the task to be performed by the system. Security of data is important, and it must cover not only the inadvertent access to confidential data, but also must stop corrupt data from entering the system. Audit is becoming increasingly important, and the ability to achieve this should be inbuilt into any data collection system. A staged introduction of these systems is suggested without trying to achieve too much at the initial attempt. Adaptability is important so that as new technologies are introduced, the old systems should not be made redundant. Eventually it should be possible to achieve the goals set, and include fields for image capture of the colposcopic findings, which although not an essential requirement for such systems, is certainly a desirable one.
authors.affiliation: City Hospital NHS Trust, Birmingham, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: M I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Shafi
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Luesley
mesh_terms: D020681:Colposcopes; D003127:Colposcopy / Q000379:methods*; D016494:Computer Security; D003219:Confidentiality; D003625:Data Collection; D003628:Database Management Systems; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D008485:Medical Audit; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*