Custom-made database enabling a quick search for patients fulfilling specific criteria. A simple and effective tool for clinical data collection for scientific purposes
Paweł Daszkiewicz1, Zuzanna Daszkiewicz2, Piotr Daszkiewicz3
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Introduction: Every evidence-based scientific work requires precise and reliable data. In clinical medicine, this means searching for patients fulfilling specific criteria. Unfortunately, most hospital-operated information systems are designed to process data concerning treatment of specific patients, mainly in its medical and administrative aspects, while a crosssectional search for patients with a specific pathology at a specific location is difficult if not impossible. Therefore, most of these databases are essentially useless for scientific purposes. Material and method: Based on medical records of all patients treated at our facility, we have created a simple database enabling a quick search for patients fulfilling specific criteria. We used Microsoft® Office Access® software installed on a standard PC. Structure and the use of database are described in detail. Results: Our database contains basic information about 16,126 patients treated over 38 years and occupies 5.19 MB. To date, 48 queries have been performed, providing reliable scientific material. Conclusion: This is an effective and comprehensive tool for the search of patients or items fulfilling specific criteria. To the best of our knowledge, such a tool for the management of clinical data has not been described to-date. After introducing appropriate modifications, a similar database will be very useful in every clinical centre.