Summary
Objectives:
The exchange of electronic medical data between healthcare providers constitutes
an integral part of modern medicine, and its importance is growing. Efficient application
on a national level requires a uniform approach to the management of healthcare data
exchange, avoiding isolated solutions that are expensive and also incompatible.
Methods:
In this communication we explain the basic concepts of establishing a nationwide
framework to guide healthcare data exchange in Austria. To achieve this goal, a three-step
approach was adopted: (i) creating general guidelines to direct electronic medical
data exchange; (ii) defining detailed standards for electronic messages; (iii) organizing
pilot projects to implement these standards, and further improving the general guidelines
based on the results of the pilot projects.
Results:
We present the MAGDA-LENA framework which guides healthcare data exchange in Austria,
and compare it with the US framework HIPAA. We describe several communication scenarios
for which concrete message standards were developed in recent years, based on the
MAGDA-LENA framework. We further discuss the implementation of these standards in
four pilot projects.
Conclusions:
The strategic approach of managing healthcare data exchange presented in this paper
is expected to have a substantial impact on medical informatics in Austria over the
next few years.
Keywords
Computer communication networks - telemedicine - policy making - Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
