Georg Duftschmid wrote: > > > So I have the impression that an EHR reference model helps to achieve > some kind of "advanced functional interoperability", but I would not > say that it is REQUIRED to achieve functional interoperability > (refering to the PDF-exchange as a counter-example). > * no reference model = no computability, including queryability. To overcome that, if you use PDFs, plain text etc, you need structured meta-data. As soon as you need that (e.g. like IHE) you need a model of it. As soon as it tries to be more sophisticated, the model becomes more complex. If we want queryable, computable data (e.g. for decision support, research), you have to have models. Otherwise the software doesn't know what the data mean.
- thomas beale *
