IHE-Europe – Use Case Based Approach to eHealth Interoperability Peter Künecke, SIEMENS Medical Solutions IHE-Europe „vendor“ co-chair Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise

IHE : Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise

IHE Organizational Structure Multi-Domain & Multi-National IHE Organizational Structure Multi-Domain & Multi-National Participants contribute Global Development: Radiology, IT Infrastructure, Cardiology, Lab, etc. Delegates IHE Europe IHE North America IHE Asia/Oceania Regional & National Deployment supervises reports IHE (International) Strategic Development Committee Sponsor Co-Chairs Global Interoperability IHE Domain-related Planning and Technical Committees

Integration Profiles Q Actors Q Transactions Q Standards User Focus: Solutions to Clinical Problems TransactionTransaction TransactionTransactionTransaction Transaction Transaction Transaction Transaction TransactionTransactionTransaction Vendor Focus: Implementation Technical Details (Standards)

What is IHE NOT IHE is not a standard You conform to a standard You comply with IHE integration profile and actors IHE is not a standards development organization IHE is not a certifying authority IHE is not simply a demonstration project Demos are only one means to the end: Adoption Backed up by documentation, tools, testing, and publication of information IHE is not just for radiology

Evolution of IHE Domains Radiology IT Infrastructure for Healthcare Cardiology Laboratory Radiation Oncology Patient Care Coordination Patient Care Devices Pathology Pharmacy IHE Global Developments Integration Profiles – Solutions to Real-World Needs & Problems:  Within Clinical Departments e.g.: oRadiology oCardiology oLab o...  Across Departmental & Institutional Boundaries – XDS oRHIOs (Regional Healthcare Information Organizations) oEHR Enablers Veterinarian Endoscopy Eye Care / Ophthalmology Year 1 (1999)Year 2 (2000)Year 3 (2001)Year 4 (2002)Year 5 (2003)Year 6 (2004)Year 7 (2005) Year 8 (2006) Year 9 (2007)

IHE, Annual Cycle Installation on site Demonstration (National show) Vendors implement the profile in their products Multi-vendors test at the annual Connect-a-thon Engineers from vendors collaborate to define technical specification Clinicians identify clinical problems to be addressed Choice of relevant standards (HL7, DICOM, W3C, Oasis…)

IHE Connect-a-thon Open invitation to vendor community Advance testing tools (MESA) Testing organized and supervised by project management team Thousands of cross-vendor tests performed Results recorded and published

Berlin engineers from 19 countries 34 IHE monitors 60 vendors 111 systems >1750 tests >1000 vendor / actor combinations 5 domains 44 actors tested 31 Integration profiles IHE-Europe Connect-a-thon Berlin, April 2007

IHE demonstrations

View Beyond * * Active Domains Radiology IT-Infrastructure Cardiology Laboratory Radiation Oncology Patient Care Coordination Patient Care Devices Pathology Pharmacy Eye Care, Endoscopy, Dermatology,Ophtalmology, Veterinarian, Pharmacology *

IHE Technical Framework Detailed standards implementation guides  Cardiology  IT Infra  Lab  Radiology

Organization of TFs Volume 1: Integration Profiles  Describes clinical need and use cases  Identifies the actors and transactions Volume 2+ of Technical Framework  Provides implementation specification for each transaction by specific reference to Standards

Integration Profiles (1) Based on real use cases of real users Easy to understand functional units using and specifying commonly used standards Describing actor / transaction relations Giving solutions to interoperability problems Independant of vendors or providers

Integration Profiles (2) Solutions exist already in different domains : Number of existing Integration Profiles RADRadiology: ITIInformation Technology Integration: LABLaboratory Medicine: CARDCardiology: PCCPatient Care Coordination:... and many more are available or in development... and many more are available or in development

Request for Proposals (RFPs) Incorporate IHE framework into RFP documents & product selection Much easier to specify an IHE Integration Profile than detailed technical specs Use IHE framework to evaluate your current workflow, even if not buying now Vendors build product functions that are requested by customers

Challenges for a vendor Healthcare is one of the most promising markets for IT National Markets for Health IT products in Europe are too small to justify required R&D investment Interoperability is not only increasingly useful but it becomes now a condition for surviving IHE is the best response to these constraints

IHE Cost / Benefits for Vendors Costs:  All Technical Framework, publication of IHE Integration Statement: free  Participants to the Connect-a-thon: ~3k€ fees + travel + software development (the real expense!)  Contributors to the Technical framework: time & travel expenditure / t-con participation Benefits:  Conformance to the user demand and proof  Tests with multiple vendors, (participants, not customers)  Access to international expertise (contributors)

In Conclusion IHE is dedicated to interoperability of IT systems in healthcare IHE is a user & vendor driven initiative IHE is already working worldwide Users and vendors already benefit IHE -> a proven concept Thank you for your attention!