On Thu, 15 Oct 1998 21:59:43 +0100, Adrian Midgley wrote:

>So, my advice to GPs and to PCGs.  Own your system.  Own the source code so that you can fire one company and hire another to maintain 
>it.

I'd even go further and better:

Do not buy a system that locks the database in the application.  Buy
one that puts the databse in the open platform, then makes that
platform available to *any* application.

This is a key issue.  MediDesk does that and it is one of its major
strengths.  There will be others.  There was a hospital system at EHI
that was built using XML (GraphNet).

Freeing the databse and opening the platform is what I call 4th
generation information systems.  Messing about with glueware and
middleware to support the dinasaurs is a waste of time and resources.

PCGs will need to take this onboard if they ever have a chance of
achieving integration.  The government sees this clearly.  Expect
gentle push towards truly open systems.

This paradigm is also the nearest thing that will allow you to
construct the electronic health record.  Existing systems cannot do
that.

Imagine this:  the databases are independent of the application, the
platform is available to any application, 1000 of clever people writing
1000s of 'shareware-like' programs that you can just download to try
before you buy for a tenner a go, and yet be able to integrate these
programs with the core system!

Plug 'n' play big time for clinical information management.

Now, show me a single system of the old model that can do that.

Ahmad

________________________________________

Dr Ahmad Risk
http://mednetics.org
Office: +44 (1273) 748198
Home: +44 (1273) 724866
Fax:  +44 (1273) 748198




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