1520-9202/17/$33.00 © 2017 IEEE Published by the IEEE Computer Society computer.org/ ITPro 27 FEATURE: CROWDSOURCING TRENDS IN IT GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT IT IN HEALTHCARE Shu-Man Chang, Chang Gung University, Taiwan Yan-Yuen Poon, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan Chun-Yi Lin and Yung-Hsiu Lin, Chang Gung University, Taiwan Ping Pete Chong, Ming Chi University of Technology, Taiwan Her-Kun Chang, Chang Gung University, Taiwan I n hospitals, the anesthesia preoperative evalu- ation clinic (APEC) is an integrated service designed to give patients an in-depth under- standing of their scheduled operations and help physicians evaluate operative risks when preparing anesthetic care plans. APEC services can increase patient satisfaction and quality of care and decrease hospital operational costs and the number of last-minute surgical cancella- tions. 1–3 Led by the anesthesiology department, the APEC helps anesthetists evaluate patient risk factors toward scheduled surgeries, 1,4–7 and is a crucial clinical assessment. This evaluation in- cludes risks associated with the patient’s physical status, functional capacity, and type of planned surgery. Additionally, the risks of cardiac com- plications and stroke as defined by medical guidelines and literature should be embedded in the evaluation to help decrease postoperative morbidity and mortality. 8–11 After the evalu- ation, anesthetists can calculate the patient’s surgical risks and decide on a proper anesthetic care plan. Because this decision crucially af- fects quality of care, anesthetists must receive Most anesthesia information management systems in hospitals focus primarily on displaying and storing patient records. The authors’ computerized clinical procedure system uses embedded medical guidelines and risk-estimating algorithms to facilitate risk factor assessment for anesthetists. IT-Enabled Support for Anesthesia Preoperative Evaluation Clinics