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Methods Inf Med 1995; 34(01/02): 85-95
DOI: 10.1055/s-0038-1634576
Original article
Schattauer GmbH

Development of a Controlled Medical Terminology: Knowledge Acquisition and Knowledge Representation

M. A. Musen
1   Section on Medical Informatics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
,
K. E. Wieckert
1   Section on Medical Informatics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
,
E. T. Miller
1   Section on Medical Informatics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
,
K. E. Campbell
1   Section on Medical Informatics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
,
L. M. Fagan
1   Section on Medical Informatics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
› Author AffiliationsThis work has been supported in part by grant HS06330 from the United States Agency for Healthy Care Policy and Research, by grant IRI-902293 from the National Science Foundation, by grant LM05305 from the National Library of Medicine. and by a gift from the Computer-Based Assessment Project of the American Board of Family Practice.
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Publication History

Publication Date:
09 February 2018 (online)

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Abstract:

The creation of controlled medical terminologies is a central challenge in the development of electronic patient records. In the T-HELPER patient-record system, designed for the care of patients with HIV diease, the IVORY module allows health-care workers to compose textual progress notes by making selections from menus generated automatically from a controlled medical terminology. Construction of this IVORY terminology required extensive design sessions with a team of computer scientists and an expert physician. Refinement of the terminology was only possible when the design team could envision how the completed T-HELPER system would be used in the context of clinical practice. Development of controlled medical terminologies is a significant problem in knowledge acquisition. Techniques used to acquire and represent clinical concepts for the purpose of building decision-support systems also are appropriate for the construction of controlled terminologies such as the one in T-HELPER.

Keywords:

Controlled Medical Terminology - Knowledge Acquisition - Participatory Design - T-HELPER System - IVORY System
 

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