PDF Healthcare Overview
A guide to safe access and transport of health information
What is PDF Healthcare?
A Best Practices Guide describing attributes of the Portable Document Format (PDF) to facilitate the capture, exchange, preservation and protection of healthcare information
Share
data easily between healthcare institutions Ease the transition into digital health records Bridge the gap between healthcare providers and consumers
PDF Healthcare Objective
Objective
Utilizing
PDF features and functionality, the objective is to develop a secure, electronic container that can store and transmit relevant healthcare information, including but not limited to personal documents, clinical notes, lab reports, electronic forms, scanned images, photographs, digital X-rays, and ECGs, important for maintaining and improving ones health.
Background
eHealthcare is a reality in todays environment PDF advantages in healthcare
Long-standing success and adoption of PDF PDF provides a secure and universal container for multiple data types regardless of data source or destination PDF is platform- and system-neutral PDF allows for interoperability and bi-directional information exchange Selected records can be easily and quickly printed from PDF when necessary
PDF usage addressing specific industry needs include:
PDF/A (Archiving), PDF/E (Engineering), PDF/UA (Universal Access), PDF/X (Printing)
Identifying the Need
Issues
Improving
patient safety while lowering costs
Many healthcare errors and unnecessary expenses occur during the exchange of patient-related information between and among physicians / institutions.
Sending
/ receiving paper-based health records
Handwritten, paper-based records, often illegible, cannot be quickly transmitted and easily searched.
Need
for a universal container to hold various types of health information Need for consumer access to personal healthcare data - any time, any where, on any device
Consumers want to take a more active role in the management of their healthcare; for example, by being able to amend and update their personal health information.
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Identifying the Need
(continued)
Issues
Security
and liability Ease of use Current information systems have little or no interoperability capabilities that can serve the needs of the patient/consumer by protecting the patients privacy and securing the patients information. Paper records can be easily destroyed (e.g., during natural disasters) with no means for recovery / data rebuilding, except for the dependence on a patients memory.
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Why PDF in healthcare?
PDF is powerful and flexible PDF can focus on the specific needs of the healthcare market Interoperability and portability
PDF
is based on open, published specifications
The PDF Healthcare Best Practices Guide will be developed and maintained by an external committee with healthcare industry knowledge
Initial PDF Healthcare Offering
Best Practices Guide
Describes
the attributes of the Portable Document Format (PDF) that are relevant to facilitate the capture, exchange, preservation and protection of healthcare information information that will provide examples of interoperability with existing healthcare standards such as ASTMs Continuity of Care Record (CCR), Health Level 7s Clinical Document Architecture (CDA) as well as other, new, emerging standards
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Implementation Guide / Use Cases
Supplemental
Initial PDF Healthcare Offering (continued)
Implementation Guide / Use Cases
The
first use case example will be based on the CCR standard and will include the following:
patient demographics insurance information problems and diagnoses medication list allergies immunizations actors, such as information about Primary Care Physicians (PCPs) or specialists
The Development Process
Work is organized by accredited standards development organizations (SDOs):
AIIM International & ASTM International Published as joint project between AIIM and ASTM Version 1 of the Best Practices Guide early 2007 ASTM CCR use case early 2007 HL7 CDA use case mid 2007 HL7/ASTM CCD use case TBD Others to be determined
Timeframe
Implementation use cases
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Partial List of Participants
AIIM / ASTM Adobe Systems, Inc. American Academy of Family Physicians American Academy of Pediatrics CapMed Cerner Dak Systems Consulting eClinicalWorks Generator LLC Good Health Network Intel Massachusetts Medical Society
Med Commons MEDecision MediKeeper Merck MinuteClinic NextGen Northern Illinois Physicians for Connectivity Northrop Grumman Point and Click Solutions Schering-Plough SureScripts YourTimeMatters.com
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Additional Information
For more information please email:
pdf-h@listserv.aiim.org
To join the working group please contact:
Betsy Fanning - bfanning@aiim.org
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