A provider of mental health services on multiple sites experienced major problems of availability with traditional paper records and commenced development of an electronic patient record (EPR) and clinical information system in order to provide integrated, real time patient based information. The development process, including clinical and technical considerata is described in order to draw conclusions about the ways in which EPR's can be a vehicle for change from traditional practice to the multidisciplinary, community based practise developments of recent years. The system can generate information for continuous quality improvement, service planning, and philosophies of care. The key requirements of good record systems are established and the inability of paper records to meet them. In contrast the electronic record has demonstrated ability to guarantee personalised, quality, mental health care.