Dolphin project--cooperative regional clinical system centered on clinical information center

In 2001, a system was created to improve patient service, improve the quality of medical care, and achieve efficient medical care. A Data Center was established to accumulate and manage clinical information in the regions and share clinical information safely and appropriately. The system has already been in operation for 3 years. Even though a patient may have been examined at multiple hospitals, his medical record information will be integrated at the Center. This ensures medical care continuity and enables the patient to view his own medical records at home. Its usefulness in obtaining informed consent has been demonstrated as well. XML instances established in the MML standards (MML (Medical Markup Language): http.//www.medxml.net/E_mml30/mmlv3_E_index.htm Accessed July 2004; Jpn. J. Med. Informatics (JJMI) 17(3):203-207, 1997; J. Med. Syst. 24(3):195-211, 2000; J. Med. Syst. 27(4):357-366, 2003; J. Med. Syst. 28(6):523-533, 2004) are used for Electronic Medical Record System data exchange between the Data Center and each medical institution. The openness provided by XML makes it possible to connect diverse electronic medical records to the Center. As of the year 2004, over 10 types of electronic medical records have an MML interface, enabling connection to the Center.