Abstract
(English)
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The primary output of Synapses is a specification of the SynOM (= the Synapses Object Model), SynOD (= the Synapses Object Dictionary which contains the definitions of sharable clinical objects). The SynOD is based on a canonical model of the architecture of the FHCR (= Federated Healthcare Record) providing a standard for an EHCR server. The specification has been produced in accordance with the ISO Open Distributed Processing (ODP) Model.
It is in the public domain and is available to all suppliers as the basis for building Synapses-compliant systems. In order to ensure the genericity of the proposed Synapses standard, the results have been validated in a variety of different clinical domains - including intensive care, shared diabetic management, oncology, internal medicine and general surgery - in different geographical settings and using different technologies. An important aspect of the Synapses philosophy is the openness of the solution. It is designed to be integrated into a variety of different computing environments and provides a possible migration strategy towards the EHCR without requiring investment in existing systems to be discarded, an essential requirement. As a proof of concept, several implementations have been built, the major ones being in Geneva, Dublin, London and Oslo.
Synapses therefore has not sought to develop yet another proprietary solution but rather to propose a generic standard for sharing EHCRs and related data and is therefore working closely with the relevant standards bodies, in particular CEN TC/251 and CORBAMed, to whom formal submissions have been made. The Synapses approach is having a significant and positive impact on the emerging standards for shareable EHCRs. Synapses is also playing an important role in both the 4th Framework umbrella projects, SynEx and InterCare. Synex has as one of its main objectives the intregration of the two CEN standards ENV 12967-1 and CEN ENV 12265. The CEN ENV 12967-1 'Healthcare Information Systems Architecture' standard defines an holistic architectural approach where the various, organisational, clinical, administrative and managerial requirements may co-exist and cooperate, relying on a common heritage of information and of functionalities. The specialisation to the healthcare record relies on the CEN ENV 12265 and proposed extensions to that standard worked out in Synapses. In addition the middleware approach facilitates the inclusion of other services utilising the common data. In particular the integration of a terminolgy server will enable semantic interoperabilioty to be achieved, at least in principle !
Finally, the commercial partners within the Synapses consortium have either already integrated, or are planning to integrate, the Synapses interfaces into their next generation of EHCr products.
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