1996 by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. All rights reserved. Medical decision making is sufficiently difficult by itself, but is even more complex given the added pressures of today's environment. Besides the obvious goal of improving quality of care, there are increased concerns over liability as well as pressures to reduce costs. In addition, the medical field is growing rapidly, with new research yielding different and better ways to evaluate and treat patients. Health care providers must keep up with these new findings and also with the technology that is being developed to support various tasks. Because computer systems and other automated devices have been developed in all aspects of health care, doctors, nurses, technicians, and administrators must determine the potential utility of new products as well as master the use of those products selected for use.
