Meaningful Use creates ‘medical bridges to nowhere’ generated a lot of this morning. What I find most interesting is that the $100 million dollar alternative to the $34 billion dollar Meaningful Use program is based on grid computing. And grid computing relies on the workflow management systems technology I write about here and elsewhere every day. Don’t believe me? Take a look a the following section of index from Grid Computing: Infrastructure, Service, and Applications.
I rest my case.
Actually, I don’t, because I’m sure to continue in the same vein.
A grid computing system for healthcare data exchange is exactly what we need in healthcare. And it relies on much of the same technology I’ve argued is missing from most EHRs and health information systems. If you are interested in learning more about this technology, check out my archive of almost 2000 links at the EHR.BZ Report: EMR & EHR Workflow, Usability, Safety, and Productivity. And follow me on Twitter at .
P.S. Here’s a description of a grid computing workflow editor. Note its graphical drag-and-drop nature. Of course, the elements that are drag-and-drop-able are technical and specialized in nature. However, a data scientist does not have to be a programmer to create and/or edit grid computing workflows. Clinicians and other care team member likewise should not have to be programmers to create and/or edit their own workflows.