Specifications plan for eHealth software
17 November 2011. The specifications and standards plan for software vendors working on the personally controlled electronic health records (eHealth records) system has been released.
The plan, produced by the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA), outlines the timeframes and process for the release of standards for the personally controlled eHealth records system, set to launch nationally on 1 July 2012.
The plan is designed to provide software developers and implementers with an agreed set of logical and technical specifications to guide enhancement of their systems to connect to the eHealth records network. For a program of this scope to succeed, a suite of nationally defined specifications and standards is essential.
NEHTA chief executive officer Peter Fleming said: "NEHTA is committed to making the road ahead clear for everyone building this important national eHealth infrastructure.
"The development of eHealth will involve timely and appropriate sharing of clinical information between consumers, their individual healthcare practitioners and healthcare provider organisations."
To coincide with the plan, the specifications for the Event Summary document, a key building block of the eHealth record, were released and published.
Specifications for other important components, including Discharge Summaries, the Consolidated View and the Call Centre Service, will be released progressively in the coming weeks.
Colin Blair, chief executive officer of Standards Australia, said the plan contributed to the ongoing development of relevant Australian and international standards associated with the eHealth records system through Standards Australia's IT-014 work plan.
"The plan will align with Standards Australia's rigorous standards development processes and adhere to our usual approach of ensuring there is extensive stakeholder consultation to achieve consensus on standards documents in the national interest," Mr Blair said.
The plan has been informed by feedback from software developers and implementers and the standards development community, as well as consultation on the eHealth records Concept of Operations document and lessons from the eHealth test sites operating around the country.
The eHealth sites, established in 12 locations around Australia, have had early access to the specifications and are working with them to test their capacity and stability in real settings.
The standards and specifications plan is available on the NEHTA website: http://www.nehta.gov.au/ehealth-implementation/pcehr-standards
Implementers and vendors can access the specifications at: http://vendors.nehta.gov.au
ENDS
For more information contact Alison Sweeney Public Affairs Officer 02 8298 2669 / 0414 187 350 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it