Guideline validation in multiple trauma care through business process modeling.
Clinical guidelines can improve the quality of care in multiple trauma. In our Department of Trauma Surgery a specific guideline is available paper-based as a set of flowcharts. This format is appropriate for the use by experienced physicians but insufficient for electronic support of learning, workflow and process optimization. A formal and logically consistent version represented with a standardized meta-model is necessary for automatic processing. In our project we transferred the paper-based into an electronic format and analyzed the structure with respect to formal errors. Several errors were detected in 7 error categories. The errors were corrected to reach a formal and logically consistent process model. In a second step the clinical content of the guideline was revised interactively using a process modeling tool. Our study reveals that guideline development should be assisted by process modeling tools, which check the content in comparison to a meta-model. The meta-model itself could support the domain experts in formulating their knowledge systematically. To assure sustainability of guideline development a representation independent of specific applications or specific provider is necessary. Then clinical guidelines could be used for training, process optimization and workflow management additionally.
Stausberg
Jürgen
J
Institute for Medical Informatics, Biometry and Epidemiology, Medical Faculty, University of Essen, Hufelandstr, 55, 45122 Essen, Germany.
Bilir
Hüseyin
H
Waydhas
Christian
C
Ruchholz
Steffen
S
D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D017146:Models, Organizational; D009104:Multiple Trauma / Q000628:therapy*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic