Cooperative information systems for epidemiological research

Important informational characteristics of epidemiological research are reviewed. Data acquisition and information processing requirements of epidemiological research studies that take advantage of current informational advances are identified. A client/server functional architecture is presented, optimized as a cooperative system that meets the dual requirements of short-term individual project goals and long-term overall group aims. An implementation within an existing medical informatics network as a dedicated epidemiological research environment is briefly discussed. The cooperative information processing system implements capabilities beyond simply the ability to process data at multiple locations. Its features are described