Medical History - Computer-assisted History Taking

Computer-assisted History Taking

Computer-assisted history taking systems have been available since the 1960s. However, their use remains variable across healthcare delivery systems.

One advantage of using computerized systems as an auxiliary or even primary source of medically-related information is that patients may be less to social desirability bias. For example, patients may be more likely to report that they have engaged in unhealthy lifestyle behaviors. Another advantage of using computerized systems is that they allow easy and high-fidelity portability to a patient's electronic medical record.

One disadvantage of current (2012) medical history systems is that they cannot detect non-verbal communication, which may be useful for elucidating anxieties and treatment plans. Another disadvantage is that people may feel less comfortable communicating with a computer as opposed to a human. In a sexual history-taking setting in Australia using a computer-assisted self-interview, 51% of people were very comfortable with it, 35% were comfortable with it, and 14% were either uncomfortable or very uncomfortable with it.

The evidence for or against computer-assisted history taking systems is sparse. For example, as of 2011, there are no randomized control trials comparing computer-assisted versus traditional oral-and-written family history taking to identifying patients with an elevated risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus.