Melinda - A custom search engine that provides access to locally-developed content using the HL7 Infobutton standard

Healthcare organizations use care pathways to standardize care, but once developed, adoption rates often remain low. One challenge for usage concerns clinicians' difficulty in accessing guidance when it is most needed. Although the HL7 'Infobutton Standard' allows clinicians easier access to external references, access to locally-developed resources often requires clinicians to deviate from their normal electronic health record (EHR) workflow to use another application. To address this gap between internal and external resources, we reviewed the literature and existing practices at the University of Utah Health Care. We identify the requirements to meet the needs of a healthcare enterprise and clinicians, describe the design and development of a prototype to aggregate both internal and external resources from within or outside the EHR, and evaluated strengths and limitations of the prototype. The system is functional but not implemented in a live EHR environment. We suggest next steps and enhancements.