Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
repository of careflows (procedures) and formal intervention plans (FIPs), specified in
SDA* notation [44] which define the stages to be followed in order to execute admin-
istrative and medical processes.
As each knowledge base is expressed in a different format, the intermediate layer
(Data Abstraction Layer, [2]) objective is to decouple the generic execution of HC
processes by the platform from the way in which the data is stored in the Knowledge
Layer. It provides a set of Java-based methods that allow the K4Care entities to re-
trieve the data and knowledge they need to perform their duties in a transparent
manner.
The upper layer of the K4Care platform [26] is implemented by means of a web-
based application on the client side (which interacts through a Web browser) and a
server side. It is designed to support the interaction with real world actors, allowing a
remote access to medical data and services both to HC professionals and patients. The
sever side, which implements the execution logic of the platform and relies on the
knowledge structures presented above, has been developed extensively using the
agent technology.
From the final user point-of-view, the K4Care Platform features the following
functionalities:
•
Secure access to a patient's EHR: the patient's Electronic Health Record which
stores clinical histories and it is stored by means of standard XML documents, is
accessed and managed only by the allowed HC actors. Permissions are modelled
explicitly within the Actor Profile Ontology and consulted at execution time,
making the system automatically adaptable to different health care organisa-
tional structures and societies.
•
Execution of HC management activities: HC procedures specified in the SDA*
formalism indicate the workflow to be followed and the activities to be com-
pleted by the different actors in order to execute HC management services. The
system is able to interpret those structures and coordinate the execution of the
involved entities accordingly.
•
Definition and execution of Individual Intervention Plans (see Figure 5): each
patient admitted for HC is assigned to an Evaluation Unit, composed by a mul-
tidisciplinary team of four people. These actors can use a graphical editor em-
bedded in the platform to define a customised Individual Intervention Plan (IIP)
adapted to the patient's personal circumstances (i.e. considering the interaction
of several pathologies that the patient may suffer), via the combination and adap-
tation of several standard Formal Intervention Plans represented in the SDA* no-
tation. The agents in the platform coordinate their activities to efficiently execute
these treatments. The platform is responsible of making an intelligent dynamic
assignment of the tasks included in the IIP among the available human actors.
•
Personalization: actors are also allowed to personalize their interaction with the
platform by requesting the modification of some aspects of the HC model (i.e.
permissions over clinical data or skills). In this manner, the system can adapt
automatically its behaviour to the preferences expressed by an actor for a par-
ticular aspect of the HC.
•
Web access: actors may have a remote access to the platform using a standard
Web browser. The graphical interface permits allowed users to request services,
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