A low-cost way to start computerizing.

Perhaps the biggest problem facing a person who wants to computerize his or her office or business is how to start. For the administrator, that often means making a series of complex, interdependent choices involving hardware, networks, and integrated nursing home management software - a daunting and expensive proposition. The result is all too often a decision postponed.

It doesn't have to be that way.

Just because computers can manage every piece of data in a nursing home doesn't mean they have to. It is possible to use a computer for two or three jobs, even a single task, and improve management and work flow. You can start with one computer on one desk - yours - with off-the-shelf, inexpensive software and begin the process of computerizing your nursing home. No, you won't have put everyone in your operation "on line," but you will have begun to learn, first hand, what computers can and cannot do. The best news is that this can all be done for well under $2,000. Here's how.

First, get a computer. You can't learn a thing about what a computer will do for you until you have one on your desk. That's because, no matter what anyone tells you, you aren't taught how to use a computer or a program, you learn how. That doesn't mean classes aren't worthwhile. A class introduces you to the process of computing or to a program, much the way piano lessons introduce you to music. However, the only way you learn to play a piano is by practicing, and the same is true with computers. The nice thing is that it doesn't take special talent to hit all the right notes with a computer.

A great computer can be had these days for $1,500 or less. You'll want a 486 or Pentium machine with 16 meg of RAM, a modem, and a large hard drive. You can add a CD-ROM drive for a couple hundred dollars more. After that, it's all bells and whistles for our purposes.

What can you do with an off-the-shelf computer program? Let's look at one category of software, personal information managers (PIMs). They range from simple schedule and calendar programs that sell for as little as $10, to sophisticated business contact and sales management software that can be had for $50 to $200. In general these programs are relatively easy to learn and use. The more sophisticated ones usually have:

* A calendar with a look similar to a monthly, weekly, or daily planner.

* An address book that will replace notes scribbled on a Rolodex card with an always clean and neat complete file on an individual, comparable to an employment or customer record.

* An automatic phone dialer that will keep track of all your incoming and outgoing calls.

* A phone log that lets you include comments and follow-up needs resulting from a phone call, put them in the files of appropriate individuals, and schedule them in your calendar.

* An automatic reminder system that lets you know that you have an appointment in ten minutes or that your director of nursing's birthday is next Tuesday.

* A built-in word processor with spellchecker for writing letters and memos that "attaches a copy" of the missive to the file of everyone to whom you sent it.

* An expense record that will link expenses to individuals or projects.

* A built-in full-function calculator.

* A fax program or automatic link to an independent fax program that lets you send directly from your computer a memo or letter as a fax without printing it and running it through a separate fax machine.

That's just the start! PIMs often have word processors good enough to write full reports. They can have task management components capable of managing complex projects. For many people looking to use a computer to better run their daily chores, a good PIM is all that is needed.

Sidekick from Borland is probably the best known of the PIMs. Other PIMs include Lotus Organizer, Ascend from Franklin Quest, and ECCO from Arabesque. Two of the better known PIMs designed principally for contact management are ACT and Maximizer. These latter programs are generally thought of as sales management software, but they work well in any environment that requires collection of data and follow-up with contacts. They would be useful for nursing home marketing directors. You should be able to purchase any of these programs for between $50 and $150. Their list price runs between $100 and $200.

Get the computer and take a class on Windows and on the specific program you are going to use, if one is available. Then use the computer and the program every day. In a short time you will have learned a great deal about computerizing, and you should find yourself relying on your PIM to manage your schedule, contacts, and personal data. If that doesn't happen, you will have learned something perhaps even more important: You aren't the person to spearhead the computerization of your nursing home. When the time comes - and it will - you will need someone on staff ready, willing and able to make it a success.

David Patterson is Contributing Editor to Nursing Homes.