title: OpenSDE: a strategy for expressive and flexible structured data entry.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This description focuses on the expressiveness and flexibility of OpenSDE: an application that supports recording of structured narrative data.
  
  
  METHODS
  OpenSDE enables data entry with (customizable) forms based on trees of medical concepts. The relevant scope for data entry can be tailored per medical domain by construction of a domain-specific tree. OpenSDE is intended for structuring narrative data to make these available for both care and research.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The OpenSDE application is currently in use at several departments in our academic hospital, including radiology, neurology, pediatrics, and child psychiatry. OpenSDE is available for all in open source.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Informatics, Ee2157, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands. r.los@erasmusmc.nl
authors.forename: Renske K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Los
authors.forename: Astrid M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: van Ginneken
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van der Lei
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval / Q000379:methods*; D008487:Medical History Taking; D008491:Medical Informatics Applications; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D009426:Netherlands; D012985:Software Design