I agree wholeheartedly with this assessment. I don't think we necessary
have competing
approaches but complementary ones in a number of cases. HL7 is far more than
a messaging protocol. As a messaging protocol, it could be regarded as
competing with CORBAmed.
But the RIM of HL7 is not a messaging protocol. It is an information model
of considerable value. I don't know as much about GEHR, but they claim to
be able to handle HL7 within the GEHR model, which probably means it is
more of a Framework. CORBAmed could also be regarded as a Framework. The
GCPR project which is being based on HL7 and CORBAmed specification is be
promoted as a Framework approach in which differing implementations can
coexist and work together. I think this is a good strategy. We do need to
get a little more concrete about the models.
Dave
At 08:35 AM 11/26/99 -0800, you wrote:
>Actually, we haven't discussed actual data models (or object models) to
>any significant degree yet. What we have discussed are modeling frameworks
>and (perhaps) methodologies. I don't think this discussion has reached a
>conclusion, what we have done is put five proposals on the table and
>discussed the general approach taken by each and some issues regarding what
>it would take to get software components based on these approaches to
>interoperate. Certainly, in the Case of VistA we have Fileman, HL7 and
>various relational databases. The approaches are certainly not mutually
>exclusive. Indeed, I'm not even sure they are always competitors! Both
>Fileman and the relational model address data; on the other hand, HL7 is a
>messaging protocol (though the protocol does have a lot to say about data,
>and experience has shown that there is often something an impedance
>mismatch between HL7 and files in VistA). Corbamed is (among other things)
>middleware, and addresses yet another set of issues.
>
>In my view, this discussion needs to continue, but we do need to start
>moving towards a discussion of actual data models, too. Since we've been
>discussing UML, it seems to make sense to me to start discussing use cases
>and use th use cases as a basis for developing our object and/or data
>model.
>
>---
>Gregory Woodhouse
>[EMAIL PROTECTED] / http://www.wnetc.com/home.html
>"An atheist staring from his attic window is often nearer to God than the
>believer caught up in his own false image of God."
>--Martin Buber
