The scope of ambulatory care has increased over the past decade as the volume and complexity of interventions has burgeoned. The opportunity to turn the potential of health information technology (IT) towards improving safety and quality in emergency department (ED) settings will form the cornerstone of this paper. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the conceptual framework of a health IT system, which is capable of using a Brief Negotiated Interview (BNI) process as an intervention tool in the ED system for patients with alcohol-related problems. This system, when implemented, is expected to improve the quality of the health services provided by conducting 100 percent drug and alcohol screening (via BNI) for every intoxicated adult patient that presents to the emergency department, and decrease alcohol intake and trauma recidivism.