WHO Forum on Health Data Standardization and Interoperability


WHO Headquarters, Geneva, Switzerland. 3-4 December 2012.


Announcement  http://bit.ly/Ooao0J


Interoperability has been  recognized as essential to achieving the full potential of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and medical devices in support of health systems as part of the overall socioeconomic development of countries. The eHealth unit within the Department of Knowledge Management and Sharing at the World Health Organization is leading this work in collaboration with technical programmes and member states to advance the appropriate use of ICTs to deliver quality of health services, reduce cost and achieve universal health coverage. Transmitting personal or population data across ICT-driven health information systems requires adherence to health data standards and related technology standards for secure, accurate and timely exchange of data for healthcare decisions.


Lack of data interoperability within and between systems developed by technical programmes or member states not only hinders care delivery, waste resources and leads to fragmentation of health information systems but at times can also cause fatalities. Implementing health data standards to achieve interoperability requires collective action by the Organization and its member states. We have to face the challenge that many countries lack capacity to participate in standards development and their implementation.


Participants invited to this forum include representatives from health data Standards Development Organizations (SDOs),  Member States, academic and research institutions, implementing partners, donor community, and subject matter experts concerned with development, adoption, and implementation of health data standards at national and sub-national level in addition to WHO technical programmes and regional offices.

e-Health standards and Interoperability


A joint ITU-WHO workshop at ITU headquarters in Geneva, 26-27 April 2012


Website: http://bit.ly/KIvIHC


“…………..The workshop gathered experts from the healthcare and ICT communities to discuss means of leveraging today’s advanced communications capabilities to achieve more efficient, cost-effective and equitable health services worldwide.

Malcolm Johnson, Director of ITU's Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB) opening the event: "With a growing, ageing, population in the 21st century, it is clear that one of the areas where ICTs can help make the greatest difference is in the provision and delivery of healthcare. ICTs are now understood to play a pivotal role in increasing efficiency and quality in delivery of health care, and reducing risk and suffering, particularly among the most vulnerable communities in developing countries. However, in e-health unfortunately standardized solutions are rare. Interoperability is a key determinant of e-Health’s efficient and equitable rollout. This is not an area where we can afford to have costly squabbles over proprietary technologies. International standards will bring down costs, increase access, and improve efficiencies."

The workshop showcased innovative healthcare technologies and policy frameworks already in force, and pointed to areas where interoperable ICT standards could further stimulate such innovations’ development and implementation.

 

At the event, the following actions were suggested to the various stakeholders:

 

Suggested ITU-WHO actions:

- Joint policy brief on the essentiality of standards and interoperability to the exchange of medical data, as well as outreach activities to educate policy-makers and business leaders on the relevance and application of e-health standards

- Creation of an e-health Working Group to advise ITU and WHO on steps to be taken in the future

- Collaborate with other Standards Development Organizations (SDOs) to create an information portal detailing all available healthcare standards and best practices in their application

 

SDO actions:

- Coordinate with the new HL7 initiative on mobile e-health

- ITU and HL7 to develop a specification for the use of ITU-T X.1303 CAP specification within HL7 to deliver health warning messages

- Consider effective cost models for e-health standards licensing

- Collaborate in the development of a common e-health standards roadmap; ensuring no work is duplicated, and encouraging a converged view on the structure of data and information in the e-health context

 

Points of relevance to the technical community (drawn from ICT and healthcare sectors):

- Address interoperability challenges impeding the development of an open, global infrastructure to enable the exchange of health information

- Begin development of an e-health standards ecosystem by addressing the required functional features of e-health technologies, while at the same time allowing these systems enough flexibility to evolve in line with the development of new technologies or best practices

- The imperative to e-health that is Quality of Service (QoS)……….”


Presentations at: http://bit.ly/TwtiVC

       
Thursday, 26 April 2012

§       Welcome: Mr Malcolm Johnson (Director, ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector)
Workshop objectives: ITU, Bilel Jamoussi, Chief Study Groups Department and WHO, Najeeb Al-Shorbaji, Knowledge Management and Sharing

§       Keynote: Laura De Nardis (American University, Washington DC, USA):
e-Health Standards and Interoperability
       
Session 1: Country perspectives

Inter-governmental panel bringing national perspectives from health and information and communication technology sectors​

Chair: Najeeb Al-Shorbaji (Knowledge Management and Sharing, WHO)
 

·       Eunju Kim (eGovframe Center, National Information Society Agency, Rep.of Korea): SW Framework for enhancing the interoperability and reusability of e-Health Services 

·       Dominic K. Atweam (Ghana Health Service, Ghana): Ghana e-health framework
 

·       Adrian Pacheco (CENETEC, Ministry of Health, Mexico): Mexico, Country Perspectives 
[Presentation ]

       
       
Session 2: Current focus, status and challenges: organizations working on e-health standardization

Chair: Bilel Jamoussi (Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, ITU)

·       Masahito Kawamori (Rapporteur, Q13/16 & Q28/16, NTT, Japan): ITU-T Work on Standardizing e-Health

·       Chuck Parker (Executive Director, Continua): Continua Health AllianceBeyond Four Walls of Traditional Healthcare

·       Elliot Sloane (Center for Healthcare Information Research and Policy, USA): Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE) - eHealth Initiatives

·       Christopher Chute (Chair, ISO TC 215): ISO TC 215 Health informatics: Current focus, status and challenges: ISO TC215 and e-health standardization

·       Steve Mills (Chair, IEEE-SA Standards Board)

·       Catherine Chronaki (HL7 International Board of Directors): HL7 CDA and its broad adoption
       
       
Session 3: Barriers and opportunities to adoption: Stakeholders’ perspectives (Part 1)​

Chair: Leonid Androuchko (Rapporteur Question 14-3/2 eHealth; University of Geneva)

·       Baljit Singh Bedi (Centre for Development for Advanced Computing; Telemedicine Society of India, India): eHealth Standardisation in India: Initiatives and Implementation Issues

·       Sultan Shamiul Bashar (Management Information System, Bangladesh): Barriers and opportunities to adopt eHealth standards and ensure interoperability:perspectives from Bangladesh

·       Shigeru Tomita (NTT DATA, Japan): Remote  Healthcare ICT  and  Mobile Healthcare ICT - Model Project  in Japan by Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications      
       
Session 4: Barriers and opportunities to adoption: Stakeholders’ perspectives (Part 2)​

Chair: Gisele Roesems (ICT for Health, DG Information Society, European Commission) 

·       Jonathan Payne (mHealth Alliance): Mobilizing standards

·       Miroslav Burša (Czech Technical University, Czech Republic): State of Interoperability in the Czech Republic - Towards Personal Health Record: Current situation, obstacles and trends in implementation of Electronic Healthcare Records

·       Basile Spyropoulos (Technological Education Institute of Athens, Greece): Combining Medical-Managerial Information and Communications Technology Standards to promote Interoperability in Health-Care: A Status Report
       
       
Friday, 27 April 2012  
Session 5: Innovation trends: Academic institutions, companies and research and development labs​

Chair: Nosa Orobaton (John Snow Institute) 

·       Guy Dumont and Beth Payne (University of British Columbia, Canada):
PIERS on the Move – Phone Oximetry for Pre-Eclampsia

·       Yoshimasa Kadooka (Fujitsu, Japan):
New heart care system based on UT-Heart for Tailor-made medicine 

·       Masahiro Kuroda (NICT, Japan):
Healthcare ICT in disaster-stricken area and hints to e-Health standards [Presentation ]

·       David Manset (MAAT, France):
 Innovation Trends in Delivering eHealth Services

·       Robert Istepanian (Kingston University, London):
4G Health- The Long Term Evolution of m-health         
       
Session 6: Identifying future needs: Health service providers and policy makers​

Panel Moderator: Peter Murray (IMIA):
Identifying future needs: Health service providers and policy makers

Panelist:Misha Kay (WHO, Geneva):
eHealth Standards and Interoperability [       
       
Session 7: Advancing e-health standards: Roles and responsibilities of stakeholders​

Panel Moderator: Marco Carugi (Rapporteur ITU-T Q3/13; ZTE, China)
       

If you would like to attend the Forum or for further information, please contact the technical focal point for this meeting,
Dr Ramesh S. Krishnamurthy via email: [log in to unmask].


Dr. Najeeb Al-Shorbaji Director, Knowledge Management and Sharing

World Health Organization
Geneva, Switzerland


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