EDMS: what it was, is, and could be.

Abstract

The decision to implement an Electronic Document Management System (EDMS) should not be made lightly. Such is the advice of a health are provider organization that pioneered the technology a decade ago. University Health Systems of Eastern Carolina's largest facility, Pitt County Memorial Hospital (PCMH), implemented an EDMS in February 1992 and converted to its current EDMS in December 1999. This article describes PCMH's transition from paper to automation, the many trials along the way, and the advantages an EDMS offers.