Processing arrangements and methods are provided for the automated
decoding or translation of information in healthcare data records, which
are coded in a non-standardized or varying formats. A data record which
contains information, a portion which is recognized and another portion
of which is new, is decoded or translated using a statistical mapping
rule. The mapping rule assigns a most likely translation value to the
information based on the recognized portion of the information. The
statistical mapping rules are established by analysis of a set of
previously decoded data records.