Most of what clinicians do is to manage information - Prof. Terry

Even though healthcare is extensively described as a service, most of what clinicians do is to manage information, according to Prof. Terry Hannan. 

This according to him underlines the critical roles that information management play in healthcare, especially patient management.

He told HealthNewsNG.com the importance of patient’s health information cannot be overemphasized. The consultant physician and health informatics expert said health information is critical to public health.

He referred to a report that stressed the relevance of good information management for patient well-being.

He said: "Although health care is considered a service profession, most of what clinicians do is manage information. They collect data (take a history, perform a physical examination, read reports, look up laboratory data, read x-rays), record data (write visit notes, operative reports, prescriptions, and diagnostic test results), transmit data (via telephone, paper or electronic charts, and email), process information to arrive at a likely diagnosis (or hierarchy of possible diagnoses), and initiate treatment. This initial chain of information management is then followed by additional cycles of data collection, management, and processing to monitor and adjust care.

Thus, information is not a necessary adjunct to care, it is care, and effective patient management requires effective management of patients' clinical data.

Gonzalo Vecina Neto, head of the Brazilian National Health Regulatory Agency, said: "There is no health without management, and there is no management without information. This data and information management forms the foundation for public health.”