With regard to discussion arising on  GPCG list re: recent HL7 workshop on Webservices and SOA.

 

I was the chairman and facilitator of the web-services workshop which was run by HL7 in the interests of educating ourselves and other about Service Oriented Architecture Models and the Web-Services standards that underpin them. We also had an opportunity to hear first hand from NEHTA after the release of their document on secure communication in a technical forum and for them to get feedback. The presentations were published as usual on CD for participants on the day and are now available on the HL7 site (http://www.hl7.org.au/2006-WS.htm ) It was a constructive day and all got a fair hearing.  There certainly was some surprise at the complexity of the new Web Services direction and distance that many of our vendors and their clients are from being able to fully adopt web-services standards for communication. It was also clear that not all communication can or should happen via web services and that there are specific characteristics of the communication tasks which make Web Services attractive. Michael Georgeff made the point that we need to look for these applications in health and apply Web Services there initially.

 

We had around 10 presentations from vendors about their current and planned activity to use web services. My take on Tom Bowden's presentation was that HealthLink feel that their current models, particularly what they are doing in NZ lately, are closely aligned with the new directions. Ross's presentation was focused on how Argus will assist practices and vendors migrate from a predominately email (SMTP protocol) communication to web services using a model that allows GP system time to acquire the necessary infrastructure for full web-service communication. He would see his approach as also being aligned with NEHTA directions

 

The model Ross has proposed for development of Argus uses the concept of a document repository which allows those who want to communicate with a GP system to post a message that there is a document or message waiting as many GP systems are not always “on”. This register does not necessarily store the document centrally, more likely contains the address where the document or report is stored so that the GP system can look up who has messages for it and can retrieve them when it comes online.  This approach means that the GP system does not have to poll every possible system that might want to communicate with it and uses the register to know what is out there.

 

Essentially it appears thanks to me Argus is proposing to establish a hub for effectively holding messages (or pointers to them) just like any of the other communication vendors. I am not sure why this model is being singled out as incompatible with current NEHTA directions. If it is then we should hear from NEHTA directly.

 

Under a full web service model the IT systems of small business enterprises (like GPs) would need to have the capacity to be always connected to the internet and their software would need to have additional web service functionality added. This may not sound like it is too difficult, but in reality any wholesale change in the way things are done, especially if it involves adoption of a standard is no light undertaking and there has to be a business model to support making the change.

 

What Ross has proposed is not dissimilar to a model being widely considered internationally for electronic access to health related documents (eg discharge summaries, test results,  even event summaries) under a group called IHE (Integrating the HealthCare Enterprise).  I posted a report from the US based EHR Vendors Association several weeks back which described this model which is being backed by most of the major US hospital EHR vendors. Likewise in the last few days the US Commission on Conformance in Health IT (CCHIT) has published standards for Ambulatory EHR function and communication. This requires community EHRs access IHE XDS clinical document registers by 2007 and can make GP documents available by 2008.

 

The documents sharing model has also been accepted as the direction by ISO and is under draft standard development by Korea which will be now based on the IHE existing model. 

 

How does this work?

 

Basically this is a web service based system with a document directory service that stores the location of the document or record and allows the user to look up what documents exist for a particular patient and access them via a web service.  It is not dissimilar in operational concept to an internet search engine - it is just that the index is created by participating organisations pushing up just enough data to identify the patient, document and its location to the directory.

 

This model is being looked at as the basis of Regional Health Information Organisations or Networks which provide initially a locally based system for sharing health information (with appropriate privacy and security) in the USA.  This is a fully standards based integration profile and allows for linkage between document registries.  Such systems have been through the IHE connectathon verification process and have the backing of companies such as IBM and Cerner. They were demonstrated at the Jan HIMSS meeting.

 

We expect to demonstrate how such a regional health information network will work in this years interoperability demonstration at the HISA meeting in August.  (http://www.hisa.org.au/102243.php )

 

I think we are overlooking in our discussions that the future communication in healthcare is more than sending point to point messages, we have to have models to support referrals, e-prescribing, and access to information as patients move around the system. In these cases the user of the information may not be known to the sender. 

 

I will ask some colleagues from IBM and Intersystems who are presenting this at the 2006 interoperability demo to provide some more detailed information on IHE  XDS to this group. I would expect that given the traction the IHE XDS model is gaining in Europe, US, Asia that we wil need to look more closely at it for use in Australia, if people want to share clinical documents.

Eg hospital discharge summaries

 

 

 

Regards

 

Peter MacIsaac

MacIsaac Informatics

 

Consulting in Health Informatics, Terminology & Data management and Health Policy.

 

[EMAIL PROTECTED]

 

0411403462 (mobile)

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8 Ewart St. Yarralumla 2600

 

"We trained hard, but it seemed every time we were beginning to form up into teams, we would be reorganised. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganising, and a wonderful method it can be for creation the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency and demoralisation."

 

- From Pertonii Arbitri AD 66, attributed to Gaius Petronus, a Roman General who later committed suicide.

 

-----Original Message-----

From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]

On Behalf Of Tim Churches

Sent: Tuesday, 25 April 2006 6:31 PM

To: General Practice Computing Group Talk

Subject: Re: [GPCG_TALK] Laugh out Loud!

 

Andrew N. Shrosbree wrote:

> Tom,

> 

> You evidently did not understand a word of what Ross said at the

conference.

 

What did Ross say at the conference?

 

Tim C

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Regards

Peter MacIsaac
MacIsaac Informatics

Consulting in Health Informatics, Terminology & Data management and Health Policy.

[EMAIL PROTECTED]

0411403462 (mobile)
61611327 (office)
peter_macisaac (skype)

8 Ewart St. Yarralumla 2600

"We trained hard, but it seemed every time we were beginning to form up into teams, we would be reorganised. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganising, and a wonderful method it can be for creation the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency and demoralisation."

- >From Pertonii Arbitri AD 66, attributed to Gaius Petronus, a Roman General who later committed suicide.

 


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