Clinical (or diagnostic) decision support systems (CDSS) are interactive computer programs, which are designed to assist physicians and other health professionals with decision making tasks. A working definition has been proposed by Dr. Robert Hayward of the Centre for Health Evidence; "Clinical Decision Support systems link health observations with health knowledge to influence health choices by clinicians for improved health care". This definition has the advantage of simplifying Clinical Decision Support to a functional concept. The basic components of a CDSS include a dynamic (medical) knowledge base and an inferencing mechanism (usually a set of rules derived from the experts and evidence-based medicine) and implemented through medical logic modules based on a language such as Arden syntax. It could be based on Expert systems or artificial neural networks or both (connectionist expert systems).
External links
- Decision support chapter from Coiera's Guide to Health Informatics
- OpenClinical maintains an extensive archive of Artificial Intelligence systems in routine clinical use.
- Some useful links
- Prerequisites
- A chapter of a book
- A slide show
- A systematic review
- Improving Outcomes with Clinical Decision Support: An Implementer’s Guide is a new resource designed to help healthcare organizations use clinical decision support (CDS) to measurably improve key healthcare outcomes such as the quality, safety, and cost-effectiveness of care delivery.
- ActiveHealth Management's CareEngine™ Clinical Decision Support technology helps health plans, employers, providers and consumers improve outcomes and save costs.
- InferMed Clinical Decision Support software
- Prospero Business Suite
