Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Technology

medical applications of computers 299DeviceTypical Data Transfer Speeds inBits Per Second (BPS)approximate SpeedEthernet(10 base) 10 MbpsFast Ethernet100 MbpsGigabit Ethernet1 GbpsV.90 dial-up modem 56 KbpsISDN phone line64 KbpsDSL (ADSL)1–24 MbpsCable modem (DOCSIS)10–160 MbpsBluetooth 2.0 (see bluetooth) 3 Mbps802.11b wireless (see wireless 11 Mbpscomputing)802.11g wireless (see wireless 54 Mbpscomputing)802.11n wireless 540 MbpsFurther ReadingHow Many? A Dictionary of Units of Measurement. Available online.URL: http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/. Accessed August 14,2007.Online [unit] Conversion. Available online. URL: http://www.onlineconversion.com/. Accessed August 14, 2007.SG Bits/Bytes Conversion Calculator. Available online. URL:http://www.speedguide.net/conversion.php. Accessed August14, 2007.media center, homeIn recent years many families have acquired a plethora ofmedia and devices to play it—CD and DVD players, radios,and of course TVs. Meanwhile, the family has likely alsoacquired one or more PCs, which are also capable of playingdigital audio and video from various sources. The mediacenter is a way of integrating all of these media into onecentrally located device, the PC, and ideally being able toserve it on demand anywhere in the home.Modern PCs already have optical drives (see cd-romand dvd-rom). TV signals can be received using a TV tunercard or, for digital cable signals, a “cable card.” (High-definitionTV or HDTV is becoming increasingly popular.)There are also tuners for AM/FM radio. Of course audioand video files can also be received directly over the Internet(see Internet radio; music and video distribution,online; and streaming).Media Storage and DistributionOnce media is received, it can be stored on one or more harddrives (see also DVR). The media can also be distributed toremote speaker units via the wired (or more often wireless)network. Remote controls are usually provided to allow thesystem to be controlled from anywhere in the building.Of course software is needed to integrate these devicesand functions. Microsoft provides the Windows Media Centerfor Vista and the Windows XP Media Center Edition.(There is also third-party software for Windows.) Linuxsystems can run programs such as MythTV (free) or thecommercial SageTV. For the Macintosh, a project calledCenterStage was under development as of 2008.Prebuilt media centers with the PC and all the necessaryinputs and outputs are also available. They are often sold aspart of home theater systems.Further ReadingBallew, Joli. How to Do Everything with Windows Vista Media Center.Emeryville, Calif.: McGraw-Hill/Osborne, 2007.Knoppmyth (Knoppix and MythTV Linux media center). Availableonline. URL: http://www.knoppmythwiki.org/?id=KnoppmythWiki. Accessed October 1, 2007.Layton, Julia. “How Media-Center PCs Work.” Available online.URL: http://computer.howstuffworks.com/media-center-pc.htm. Accessed October 1, 2007.Smith, Stewart, and Michael Still. Practical MythTV: Building a PVRand Media Center PC. Berkeley, Calif.: Apress, 2007.Windows Media Center (Vista). Available online. URL: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/features/details/mediacenter.mspx. Accessed October 1, 2007.medical applications of computersSince health care delivery is a business (indeed, one of thelargest sectors of the economy), any hospital, health plan, orindependent medical practice involves much the same softwareas any other large business. This includes accountsreceivable and payable, payroll, and supplies inventory.Both general and customized industry software can be usedfor these functions; however, this article focuses on applicationsspecific to medicine.Medical Information SystemsThe management of information specifically related to medicalcare is sometimes called medical informatics. The typeof information gathered depends on many factors includingthe type of institution, ranging from a small doctor’s officeto a large clinic to a full hospital and the nature and scopeof the treatment provided. However, one can make somegeneralizations.For outpatients, the required information includesan extensive medical record for each patient, includingrecords of medical tests and their results, prescriptions andtheir status, and so on. For hospital patients, there are alsoadmissions records, an extensive list of itemized charges,and records that must be maintained for public health orother governmental purposes. Hospitals increasingly usecustomized, integrated hospital information systems (HIS)that integrate billing, medical records, and pharmacy.Additional record keeping needs arise from the mechanismsused to pay for health care. Each health paymentsystem, whether government-run (such as Medicare or theVeterans’ Administration) or a private health maintenanceorganization (HMO), has extensive rules and proceduresabout how each surgery, treatment, test, or medication canbe submitted for payment. The software must be able touse recognized classifications systems such as the DSM-IV(Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders).