Healthcare semantic interoperability platform

• US 8,850,057 B2
• Filed: 09/20/2007
• Issued: 09/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Natoli, Joseph D., Kermanshahche, Kristina M., Boucher, Alan, Painter, Joshua
• Primary Examiner(s): Dharia, Rupal
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ahmed, Mohammed
• Application Number:
  US11/858,842
• Publication Number:
  US 20090080408A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,567 Days
• Field of Search: 709/201, 709/231, 709/230, 709/232, 709/238
• US Class Current: 709/232
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/258 Data format conversion from or to a database
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/35 Switches specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 Data redirection of data network streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context

Abstract

A system and method for efficiently linking local databases having different data formats or standards into a network, wherein a content based router is provided between each of the databases and a network “party line” bus and translates data from the respective database into a common canonical form or format so that all information within the network between the content based routers complies with the common canonical form and are validated according to single standard or mechanism, for example when information first enters the network. Also provided is a tracking or audit mechanism whereby each item of information provided with a unique network identifier when it first enters the network, and is also provided with or associated with a local identifier from each local database that originates or accesses the information item and router identifiers of the content based routers corresponding to those local databases.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a plurality of entities each comprising a database and each conforming to a different information standard;

a plurality of content-based routers, wherein each of the content based routers is assigned to at least one of the entities;

a first canonical standard; and

a metric for validating data for compliance with the first canonical standard;

wherein;

the content-based routers are connected to form a network;

communications within the network between the content-based routers comply with the first canonical standard;

each of the plurality of entities communicates with the network via the corresponding content-based router and provides the corresponding content-based router with a translation key, the translation key configured to map information between a first form compliant with the first canonical standard and a second form compliant with an information standard of the corresponding entity;

each of the content-based routers is configured to transform information that is in the second form from the corresponding one of the entities into the first form based on the translation key and validate the transformed information in accordance with the metric, wherein, responsive to a failure of a validation of the transformed information in accordance with the metric, the content-based router is configured to inform the corresponding entity that the translation key is inaccurate; and

each of the content-based routers is configured to transform information that is in the first form into the second form based on the translation key of the corresponding entity to which the content-based router is assigned.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the content-based routers are configured to support both broadcast communications to other content-based routers in the network and directly routed communications to other content based routers in the network.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein each of the content-based routers is configured to receive a new communication from the entity to which it is assigned, and obtain a unique network identification label for the new communication.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein each of the content based routers is configured to:

obtain, for each communication transferred through the content-based router between the network and the entity to which the content-based router is assigned, a local identification label that identifies at least one of the content-based router and the corresponding entity;

associate the local identification label with the communication;

store a copy of the communication and a copy of the local identification label; and

transmit the local identification label to at least one other content-based router in the network.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the content-based router is configured to receive and store local identification labels associated with the communication by other content-based routers.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the at least one other content-based router is at least one of a) a content-based router that transferred the communication the respective entity to which it is assigned and the network, or b) a network core tasked with caching identification labels.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the first canonical standard enables structural and semantic standardization or normalization of data within the network.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the first canonical standard is directed to health care.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of entities are health care service entities and wherein the information comprises patient health care information.

10. A method for normalizing data within a networked system, comprising:

assigning each of a plurality of content-based routers to a corresponding one of a plurality of entities including a database, wherein the entities each conform to a different information standard;

providing a first canonical standard and a metric for validating information for compliance with the first canonical standard;

forming a network among the plurality of content-based routers, wherein each of the plurality of entities communicates with the network via the corresponding content-based router and communications between the content-based routers are configured to comply with the first canonical standard;

providing, by each of the plurality of entities, a translation key to the corresponding content-based router, the translation key configured to map information between a first form compliant with the first canonical standard and a second form compliant with an information standard of the corresponding entity;

transforming, by each of the content-based routers, information that is in the second form from the corresponding one of the entities into the first form based on the translation key and validating the transformed information in accordance with the metric;

responsive to a failure of a validation of the transformed information in accordance with the metric, providing information to the corresponding entity that the translation key is inaccurate; and

transforming, by each of the content-based routers, information that is in the first form into the second form based on the translation key of the corresponding entity to which the content-based router is assigned.

11. The method of claim 10, comprising:

one of the content-based routers generating a local identification label and a network identification label for a first communication;

attaching the local and network identification labels to the first communication; and

storing copies the first communication and the local and network identification labels in a cache associated with the content-based router.

12. The method of claim 11, comprising:

one of the content-based routers generating a second local identification label for a received second communication; and

storing the second local identification label in association with the second communication in the cache associated with the content-based router.

13. The method of claim 12, comprising:

the content-based router transmitting the second local identification label through the network to each content-based router that has a local identification label associated with the second communication.

14. The method of claim 13, comprising:

the content-based router receiving and storing local identification labels generated by other content-based routers in the network.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the first canonical standard enables structural and semantic standardization or normalization of data within the network.

16. A computer-readable non-transitory storage medium, comprising instructions for causing a computer to perform:

assigning each of a plurality of content-based routers to a corresponding one of a plurality of entities including a database, wherein the entities each conform to a different information standard;

incorporating a first canonical standard and a metric for validating information for compliance with the first canonical standard;

enabling the plurality of content-based routers to form a network, wherein each of the plurality of entities communicates with the network via the corresponding content-based router and communications between the content-based routers are configured to comply with the first canonical standard;

enabling each of the plurality of entities to provide a translation key to the corresponding content-based router, the translation key configured to map information between a first form compliant with the first canonical standard and a second form compliant with an information standard of the corresponding entity;

transforming, by each of the content-based routers, information that is in the second form from the corresponding one of the entities into the first form based on the translation key and validating the transformed information in accordance with the metric;

responsive to a failure of a validation of the transformed information in accordance with the metric, providing information to the corresponding entity that the translation key is inaccurate; and

transforming, by each of the content-based routers, information that is in the first form into the second form based on the translation key of the corresponding entity to which the content-based router is assigned.

17. The medium of claim 16, wherein the data comprises patient health care information and the medium comprises instructions for causing the computer to perform:

enabling one of the content-based routers to generate a local identification label and a network identification label for a first communication;

attaching the local and network identification labels to the first communication; and

storing copies the first communication and the local and network identification labels in a cache associated with the content-based router;

enabling the content-based router to generate a second local identification label for a received second communication;

storing the second local identification label in association with the second communication in the cache associated with the content-based router;

transmitting the second local identification label through the network to each content-based router that has a local identification label associated with the second communication; and

enabling the content-based router to receive and store local identification labels generated by other content-based routers in the network.

18. A first content-based router comprising:

a metric for validating data for compliance with a first canonical standard;

a first connection to a first entity associated with the first content-based router, the first entity comprising a database containing patient health care information, the first entity providing the first content-based router with a translation key, the translation key configured to map information between a first form compliant with the first canonical standard and a second form compliant with an information standard of the corresponding entity; and

secondary connections to a plurality of other content-based routers, each of the other content-based routers comprising connections to another different entity associated with the other content-based router, the entities each comprising a database including patient health care information and each conforming to a different information standard, each of the other different entities providing their corresponding content-based router with a translation key, the translation key configured to map information between a first form compliant with the first canonical standard and a second form compliant with an information standard of the corresponding entity;

wherein all communications between the first content-based router and the other content-based routers via the second connections comply with the first canonical standard;

wherein each of the content-based routers is configured to transform information that is in the second form from the corresponding one of the entities into the first form based on the translation key and validate the transformed information in accordance with the metric, wherein, responsive to a failure of a validation of the transformed information in accordance with the metric, the content-based router is configured to inform the corresponding entity that the translation key is inaccurate; and

wherein each of the content-based routers is configured to transform information that is in the first form into the second form based on the translation key of the corresponding entity to which the content-based router is assigned.

19. The router of claim 18, wherein the first content-based router is configured to receive a new communication from the entity to which it is assigned, and obtain a unique network identification label for the new communication.

20. The router of claim 18, wherein the first content-based router and the plurality of other content-based routers form a network and wherein the first content based router is configured to:

obtain, for each communication transferred through the first content-based router between the network and the first entity, a local identification label that identifies at least one of the first content-based router and the first entity;

associate the local identification label with the communication;

store a copy of the communication and a copy of the local identification label; and

transmit the local identification label to at least one of the other content-based routers in the network.

21. The router of claim 20, wherein the first content-based router is configured to receive and store local identification labels associated with the communication by other content-based routers in the network.

22. The router of claim 18, wherein the first content-based router is a network core tasked with caching identification labels.

23. The router of claim 18, wherein the first canonical standard enables structural and semantic standardization or normalization of data within the network.

24. The router of claim 18, wherein the first entity and the other different entities are health care service entities and wherein the information comprises patient health care information.