Modeling a Clinical Pathway for Contraception

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Clinical Decision Support

Background:

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published the "U.S. Selective Practice Recommendations for Contraceptive Use" in 2016.
• This document outlines medical eligibility criteria (MEC) for initiating or continuing contraception based on patient health status.

Purpose of the Study:

• To model and standardize the processes and decisions for birth control initiation using the CDC's MEC.
• To explore the utility of Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) and Decision Model and Notation (DMN) for this purpose.
• To enable integration of these standardized models into electronic health records (EHR) systems or other digital platforms.

Main Methods:

• Utilized BPMN and DMN to model medical terminology, processes, and decisions related to contraceptive use.
• Collaborated with the CDC to ensure the accuracy of the modeled information.
• Identified and categorized challenges encountered during terminology binding.

Main Results:

• Successfully developed a standardized model for contraceptive initiation based on CDC MEC.
• Encountered challenges primarily related to the integration of clearly defined data elements.

Conclusions:

• Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) and Decision Model and Notation (DMN) can be effectively employed to create models for clinical pathways, despite inherent strengths and weaknesses.
• The developed model demonstrates the potential for standardizing clinical decision-making processes in digital health applications.