Terminological system maintenance: a procedures framework and an exploration of current practice

Area of Science:

• Medical Informatics
• Health Data Management
• Terminology Standards

Background:

• Electronically stored data necessitates structured and standardized recording, leading to the development of medical terminological systems.
• The dynamic nature of medical advancements requires continuous updates to these terminological systems.
• Current practices for maintaining medical terminologies vary significantly among organizations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish criteria for the effective maintenance of terminological systems.
• To develop a management framework for the terminology maintenance process.
• To address deficiencies in current terminology maintenance procedures.

Main Methods:

• A literature study was conducted to identify criteria for maintaining terminological systems.
• A survey was administered to twenty-seven organizations actively maintaining terminological systems.
• Analysis of survey data to explore current maintenance practices.

Main Results:

• Key criteria for terminology maintenance were identified through literature review.
• Survey results indicated significant diversity and suboptimality in existing maintenance processes.
• A framework for managing the maintenance process was developed based on the findings.

Conclusions:

• The developed framework offers a structured approach to improve terminology maintenance.
• Implementing this framework can help standardize the maintenance of medical terminological systems.
• This work is a significant step towards ensuring the quality and consistency of medical data.