Healthcare IT News - June 2008 - (Page 22)

22 Healthcare IT News I June 2008 www.HealthcareITNews.com Service-Oriented Architecture in Healthcare IT It is difficult to find a healthcare sages with different directories and IT publication or Web site that STANDARDS repositories, the application makes does not have some enthusiasa call to a Patient Identity Service tic reference to service-oriented and then to a Record Locator architecture (SOA) and Web Service. The services then query services. In fact, we previously for the requested data from multinoted in Standards Insight that ple stores, each in their respective by Ed Larsen SOA was a hot technology formats, and assemble these data theme at HIMSS08. At the NHIN Symposium to return as a single response to the requesting recently held in Dallas, it was reported the application. This frees application developers NHIN contractors would demonstrate six core from the burden of learning and communicat“services.” In March, Health Level Seven ing with multiple underlying sources in their (HL7), the Object Management Group native formats. (OMG) and the SOA Consortium sponsored a Many industries, such as wireless telecomwell attended three-day conference on SOA in munications, automated teller systems and healthcare. HL7 recently announced its intent automotive suppliers, have already embraced to develop a healthcare enterprise architecture SOA or a variant. In most cases, such services model based on services. So what is SOA and are now mission-critical to the industry. why the buzz? Healthcare has been slower to adopt SOA, priSOA is an IT architectural style of packaging marily in our view, because of the lack of a business processes as functions (services) coherent healthcare enterprise model and a loosely coupled within a middle layer linking fragmented, uncoordinated “system” for proapplications and data stores. SOA-based servic- viding and paying for healthcare. In those es provide specific functionality through a countries with a more unified healthcare sysdefined interface without requiring either the tem and national healthcare IT initiatives, such client requestor or the underlying service as Canada or the UK, services are being provider to know about either's implementa- advanced more quickly than in the United tion. They often wrap legacy applications into States. The Health Services Specification single services. A set of services is made avail- Project (HSSP), a joint initiative of HL7 and able through a middleware registry and a serv- OMG, has produced functional and/or techniice bus that allows applications to discover and cal specifications for terminology, clinical use these services. research filtered query, privacy, access and secuServices provide applications with business- rity, human services directories, entity identifilevel solutions. Rather than each application cation, retrieval/locate/update and decision having to establish a patient's identity or to find support services. one's existing records through a series of mesWe are beginning to see the potential value INSIGHT and power of SOA in the healthcare industry. First, it is a basis for linking healthcare enterprise business processes to supporting IT services. Second, it is a method for masking and managing complexity of many different systems, whether client or server. Third, it is a transition strategy for maximizing the value of existing legacy systems without burdening new applications with any direct interaction. Finally, it allows system developers and implementers to “orchestrate” services to support new business processes and applications without reprogramming existing systems. Services are not a panacea. While services standardize many specific processes, they do not, of themselves, solve the problem of semantic interoperability. However, if HL7 is able to produce a standard model of the healthcare enterprise, its business processes and resulting services, we will have a significant blueprint for healthcare IT planning. An abstract service model also does not solve the interoperability and other problems inherent in actual implementations. It may, however, provide the formal insight that does allow encapsulation of difficult and complex problems, use and reuse of both new technology and legacy systems during a period of indefinite transition in our industry. I Ed Larsen is an independent strategy consultant who tracks interoperability standards for HIMSS. For the full article, go to Standards Insight on the HIMSS Member start page. Comments or questions can be sent to erlarsen@erlinc.com. PUBLICATIONS STAFF VICE PRESIDENT, COMMUNICATIONS Fran Perveiler MANAGER, PUBLICATIONS Nancy Vitucci SENIOR MANAGER, CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS Joyce Lofstrom SENIOR MANAGER, PUBLIC POLICY COMMUNICATIONS Sharolyn Rosier Hyson SENIOR EDITOR Matt Schlossberg COORDINATOR, COMMUNICATIONS Cari McLean BOARD OF DIRECTORS CHAIR John Wade, FCHIME, FHIMSS Vice President/Chief Information Officer Saint Luke’s Health System VICE CHAIR Victoria Bradley, DNP, RN, FHIMSS Director of Patient Information University of Kentucky HealthCare CHAIR ELECT Charles E. Christian, FCHIME, FHIMSS Director, Information Systems/Chief Information Officer Good Samaritan Hospital VICE CHAIR ELECT Liz Johnson, FHIMSS Vice President, Applied Clinical Informatics Tenet Healthcare Corp. Margret Amatayakul, RHIA, CHPS, FHIMSS President Margaret A. Consulting LLC Barry P. Chaiken, MD, MPH, FHIMSS Chief Medical Officer DocsNetwork Ltd. John H. Daniels, FHIMSS, FACHE, CPHIMS, CHPS Chief Information Officer Evolvent Technologies, Inc. John Hansmann, FHIMSS Regional Manager, Management Engineering Intermountain Health Care C. Martin Harris, MD, MBA, FHIMSS Chief Information Officer and Chairman, IT Division The Cleveland Clinic Foundation Executive Director, eCleveland Clinic Joy G. Keeler, MBA Principal Health Information Technology The MITRE Corp. Jay Srini, FHIMSS Chief Innovation Officer UPMC Insurance Services Division Jonathan M. Teich, MD, PhD, FHIMSS Chief Medical Informatics Officer Elsevier Health Sciences PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Updated CPHIMS exam and study tools now available The updated Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems (CPHIMS) exam reflecting current professional practice and incorporating a global healthcare information and management systems perspective is now available. Dedicated to enhancing and promoting the healthcare information and management systems profession, the CPHIMS program grants the premier credential in the industry. Content in the updated CPHIMS exam focuses on the following topics: General Healthcare and Technology Environments; Systems Analysis; Design; Selection, Implementation, Support and Maintenance; Testing and Evaluation; and Privacy and Security; and Administration Leadership and Management. The CPHIMS exam is administered at AMP Assessment Centers throughout the world Monday through Saturday, by appointment only, on a firstcome, first-serve basis. A list of centers is available at www.himss.org/cphims. In addition, organizations, healthcare facilities, HIMSS Chapters and other groups may schedule a special on-site group administration of the exam. Study Tools In conjunction with the new CPHIMS exam, HIMSS has developed three updated study companions to maximize candidates' exam preparation and optimize exam success. All three updated tools were developed using the content outline for the new CPHIMS exam. The CPHIMS Self-Assessment Exam (SAE), an online tool, helps simulate the CPHIMS exam in format and content. The SAE offers useful feedback to future test-takers and includes a rationale for correct and incorrect responses. Feedback reports identify test takers' strengths and improvement areas. CPHIMS candidates can purchase the SAE by credit card or view the free SAE demo at www.himss.org/sae. Preparing for Success in Healthcare Information and Management Systems: The CPHIMS Review, available in both book and CD-ROM, is the perfect study partner, with sample multiple-choice questions and a glossary of acronyms, and the most current and comprehensive overview in healthcare information and management systems today. Choose either the book or CD-ROM format to meet your learning needs. The CPHIMS review book and CD can be purchased at www.himss.org/store or by calling 312-664-4467. For more information on the CPHIMS program, the CPHIMS Candidate Handbook is available for download at www.him ss.org/getcertified or by e-mailing certification@himss.org. I H. Stephen Lieber, CAE HIMSS ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS A. John Blair III, MD President and CEO Taconic IPA Steve Fox Partner Post & Schell PC Miriam Paramore Vice President, Sales, Marketing and Business Development Integra Professional Services Sunny Sanyal Chief Operating Officer McKesson Provider Technologies MS-HUG Tech Forum 2008 Tools & Resources early-bird registration now open R HIMSS08 Podcasts available on HIMSS Web site I I egistration is now open at www.mshug.org for the MS-HUG Tech Forum 2008, August 26-27 in Redmond, Wash. Early-bird registration rates apply thru July 31. Tech Forum is the place to get an inside glimpse of Microsoft and upcoming Microsoft healthcare technologies from the experts behind its product development and the pros who use it. Education tracks offer solutions geared toward clinical informatics, life sciences and health plans, in addition to education designed for IT pros and developers. Exclusive air travel discounts are available for conference attendees through American Airlines, the official carrier of the MS-HUG Tech Forum. Contact HIMSS Travel Services at 888-249-8859 (8 am - 6 pm, CST) or visit www.himssmtgtvl.com for details. number of educational podcasts recorded at the 2008 Annual HIMSS Conference & Exhibition in Orlando, are now available for download at www.procasts.com/?podcastID=35. The podcasts cover a wide range of topics, including vendor selection, technology integration, clinical decisio www.HealthcareITNews.com www.himss.org/store www.him www.himss.org/cphims ss.org/getcertified www.himss.org/sae www.mshug.org www.procasts.com/?podcastID=35 www.himssmtgtvl.com www.prolibraires

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Healthcare IT News - June 2008

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