First we had this appear.
Subject: NEHTA - National Clinical Terminology & Information Service - AMT monthly releases between August and December 2011
Date: Thu, 25 Aug 2011 09:30:17 +1000
From: "NCTIS ServiceDesk" <nctis.servicedesk@nehta.gov.au>
NEHTA - National Clinical Terminology & Information Service - AMT monthly releases between August and December 2011
Since 2007 the NCTIS has been issuing monthly national releases of the Australian Medicines Terminology (AMT) incorporating new items registered with the TGA.
While the AMT has been implemented in clinical systems in Australia, NCTIS has been consulting with software vendors and the terminology community about how we can increase uptake. As a result of this consultation and our recent AMT license holder’s survey we have identified a range of materials that would assist people implementing AMT. These materials will be defined in an AMT Implementation Plan that will be published on NEHTA’s website shortly. The AMT Implementation Plan will set out pathways to implement AMT, including integration guidance and include timeframes for deliverables such as AMT v3.
In order to respond to the market and deliver material requested by implementers over the coming months, NCTIS is pausing AMT monthly releases until December 2011. This decision has come following consultation with healthcare organisations and vendors that have already completed large scale AMT implementations, and have confirmed their operational use of AMT in clinical settings will not be impacted by this action.
We look forward to continuing our work with you to use AMT throughout the healthcare sector to support consistent terminology in medications management. Should you have any questions, comments or feedback, please direct these to terminologies@nehta.gov.au.
Regards,
NCTIS Service Desk
National Clinical Terminology & Information Service
nehta - National E-Health Transition Authority
PO Box 5190
West End, Queensland 4101
Web: www.nehta.gov.au
Then a day or so ago we had a follow-up.
Subject: Request for feedback - SNOMED CT-AU
Date: Thu, 1 Sep 2011 13:00:03 +1000
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Request for feedback on your dependency on SNOMED CT-AU release date
NCTIS released the first national release of SNOMED CT-AU in December 2009 and has been following a six monthly release cycle since then. To support the national Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record, NEHTA is undertaking additional development of detailed clinical models and associated SNOMED CT-AU reference sets. At the same time, we are also investing resources in the development of AMTv3 which will more closely align with SNOMED CT-AU, and to develop other implementation resources to help vendors and implementers use AMT.
To allocate NEHTA resources to this work, the NCTIS is considering delaying the November 2011 release. We are also investigating aligning Terminology releases with other Specification releases, such as Specialist letters, to provide a more integrated release to implementers. While we need to consult with users of NEHTA’s specifications and terminology to determine the viability of this, we can confirm that the next SNOMED CT-AU will be no later than May 2012.
In order to evaluate the significance this may have we are now writing to license holders to determine whether a delay would have an impact on any clinical application using SNOMED CT-AU. We have already written to all license holders who downloaded any of our last three releases, and have not had received feedback that any clinical application would be impacted, and the results of our recent user survey indicate this is not the case more broadly with other license holders. However, we would like to confirm this directly with you.
If you have implemented SNOMED CT-AU in a clinical setting and would be impacted by a delay in the November release, please advise us by COB Tuesday 6th September at terminologies@nehta.gov.au or 07 3023 8400.
We look forward to continuing our work with you to use SNOMED CT-AU throughout the healthcare sector to support consistent terminology in clinical management.
Regards,
NCTIS Service Desk
National Clinical Terminology & Information Service
nehta - National E-Health Transition Authority
PO Box 5190
West End, Queensland 4101
Web: www.nehta.gov.au
What NEHTA seems to be saying here is that we can’t actually walk and chew gum and so do you mind if we stop chewing so we don’t fall over.
More amazingly it seems after working for at least six years on the Australian Medicines Terminology only now have they discovered a need to actually have an implementation plan!
Surely an organisation that is being funded as well as NEHTA is can continue its ‘business as usual’ functions while undertaking some planning and improved service delivery changes?
It is interesting that Sept 1, 2011 the Health Minister announced some updates to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme Coverage:
See here:
Erbitux, Gilenya and Other Medicines Listed on the PBS
More than 400,000 Australians will benefit from new subsidised medicines from 1 September 2011, including patients suffering multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis and various forms of cancer.
.....
In all, twenty-one (21) new listings on the PBS come into effect from 1 September. More detail on these is available on the PBS website at www.pbs.gov.au.
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So already the current AMT is way out of date!
Also remember that SNOMED-CT is also meant to be the terminology underpinning the PCEHR - but it is now on hold until the end of the year apparently. I suspect that will need an implementation plan as well!
Bottom line is that under NEHTA’s management we see major initiatives such as clinical terminology simply floundering and not being used as might have been hoped.
(Of course we all know there are a few fundamental issues with SNOMED-CT - I wonder how that fits into this ‘pause’? See here:
I wonder when the powers that be will notice all this is not exactly going as planned?
Soon I hope!
David.
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