GENERAL CRITERIA FOR A CLINICAL INFORMATION SYSTEM (CIS) ARE OUTLINED, AND THE NEEDS OF THE USER -- CLINICIAN, ADMINISTRATOR, OR RESEARCHER -- ARE ASSESSED. THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS FOR CLINICIANS IS THAT INFORMATION MUST BE CLINICALLY RELEVANT AND MUST ALLOW FOR INDIVIDUAL PATIENT PROGRAMMING. AN ADEQUATE SYSTEM SHOULD SERVE MULTIPLE NEEDS AND BE ABLE TO PROVIDE DATA ON COST-BENEFIT OR EFFECTIVENESS, ON THE IMPACT OF TREATMENT, AND ON THE OUTCOME OF EVALUATIONS OF PROGRAMS. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS OF A CIS ARE DEFINED, AND INCLUDE DATA ON DESCRIPTIONS OF PATIENTS, TREATMENT PLANS, AND ASSESSMENT OF TREATMENT EFFICACY. IN ORDER TO SATISFY THESE REQUIREMENTS, THE INFORMATION SYSTEM SHOULD BE DEVELOPED TO IDENTIFY INDIVIDUALS AND EVENTS. DECISIONS MUST BE MADE ON WHETHER TO COMPUTERIZE THE SYSTEM AND IN CHOOSING THE PROPER DESIGN TEAM; AND A COMMITMENT MUST BE MADE MAINTAIN THE SYSTEM IN ALL LEVELS OF ORGANIZATION. A SYSTEMATIC, EASY WAY TO MONITOR DATA AS TO CORRECTNESS AND COMPLETENESS WILL HAVE TO BE ESTABLISHED, AND THE SYSTEM MUST BE DESIGNED FOR FLEXIBILITY IN BOTH INPUT AND OUTPUT OPERATIONS. MOST IMPORTANT, THE SYSTEM SHOULD BE KEPT SIMPLE. A GENERAL MODEL FOR A SOFT DATA INFORMATION SYSTEM IS PRESENTED AND ILLUSTRATED IN A FLOW CHART. IN ATTEMPTING TO DEVELOP AN INFORMATION SYSTEM THAT IS USEFUL TO ADMINISTRATION AND TO CLINICIANS, THE APPLICATION OF AN ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEM AND A CLINICAL SYSTEM MUST BE UNDERSTOOD. THE SYSTEMS, ALTHOUGH OUTWARDLY SIMILAR, DIFFER IN EMPHASIS OR IN USERS' NEEDS. SOME GENERAL PRINCIPLES FOR DEVELOPMENT AND OPERATION OF A SYSTEM INCLUDE THE NEED TO EVALUATE TREATMENT AND PROVIDE MEANINGFUL FEEDBACK TO INFORMATION PROVIDERS. IT IS SUGGESTED THAT THE INFORMATION SYSTEM BE EVALUATED ON THE DEGREE TO WHICH USERS' NEEDS ARE MET AND ON THE BASIS OF COST. REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (DAG)