THE POTENTIAL OF COMPUTERS IN PATIENT EDUCATION

Typical computer program's for patient education are didactic and fail to tailor, information to an individual's specific needs. New technol ogy greatly enhances the potential of computers in patient education. Computer-assisted instruction programs can now elicit information from users before leading them through problem-solving exercises. New auth oring systems enable health professionals to develop their own program s. The capacity to elicit and report back information about factors th at influence patients' health behaviors give the newest computer progr ams one of the strengths of face-to-face patient counseling: the abili ty to tailor an educational message for an individual patient. These p rograms are not intended to replace but rather to enhance personal int eraction between providers and patients. This article describes the ad vantages of using computers for individualizing patient education and assessing trends across groups of patients. Innovative programs and fe atures to look for in programs and equipment selection are also descri bed.