Uses of informatics to solve real world problems in veterinary medicine

Veterinary informatics is the science of structuring, analyzing, and leveraging information in an effort to advance animal health, disease surveillance, research, education, and business practices. Reference and terminology standards are core components of the informatics infrastructure. This paper focuses on three current activities that use reference standards in veterinary informatics: (1) the construction of a messaging standard in a national animal health laboratory network, (2) the creation of breed and species terminology lists for livestock disease surveillance, and (3) the development of a standardized diagnoses list for small animal practices. These and other endeavors will benefit from research conducted to identify innovative and superior tools, methods, and techniques. The authors believe there are many areas requiring study and special focus in order to advance veterinary informatics, and this paper highlights some of the needs and challenges surrounding these areas.