Introduction to Clinical Groupware

Clinical groupware is a new and evolving model for the development and deployment of health information technology (HIT) platforms and applications having the following characteristics: Use of the Internet and the web for EHR technology. Explicit design for information sharing and online communication among providers and patients/consumers. A modular or component architecture upon which applications can be aggregated to meet specific clinical and workflow tasks. Patient/consumer engagement tools that facilitate ongoing health management and care coordination. Interface and data exchange standards for information sharing that emerge in a market-driven manner. The Clinical Groupware Collaborative is in a formative stage organization. To date, representatives from over 50 companies have expressed interest. We are working to be formally incorporated in November 2009.