Newsletter #3
MedBiquitous Consortium Newsletter #3
22 October 2001
Published by the MedBiquitous Consortium
Contents:
- Wishes of Sympathy
- Membership Update
- XML Schema Development
- Community Code Development
- Conference Update
- Call for Participation
1. Wishes of
Sympathy
The staff of the MedBiquitous Consortium wish to extend our heartfelt sympathies to the families and friends of those lost in the September 11 attacks in New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. We have been profoundly saddened by the loss of life and uplifted by the acts of heroism that followed the attacks. We honor all those working to recover and rebuild in the wake of this awful tragedy.
2. Membership Update
The MedBiquitous Consortium is pleased to welcome the following new members: the American College of Chest Physicians, the American College of Surgeons, the American Medical Association, and the National Library of Medicine. Each of these organizations is a leader in its field, working to promote physician education, research, and ready access to medical information. We are thrilled to have them working with us to create active, innovative physician communities.
3. XML Schema Development
We'd like to introduce you to Terry Hardin. Terry is an Architect/Project Manager with IBM who will be leading technology development for the MedBiquitous Consortium. Terry has extensive experience in developing Web services and XML in the healthcare industry. He's currently in the process of drafting XML schemas for the consortium working groups.
4. Community Code Development
The MedBiquitous Consortium has developed a document outlining the scope of work for the first installment of the MedBiquitous Community Code, scheduled for release in January 2002. The scope presents an exciting plan for online communities that enable rich interactions among members and efficient business processes for the society. This high level outline of the software development project will provide a unified structure for the working groups, thereby preventing overlap and conflict. Working groups will take the information in this scope and use it to seed their Working Drafts. The document is available online athttp://www.medbiq.org/phase1.pdf. Consortium members, we welcome your feedback! This is a great chance to offer your input before the document goes to the working groups. Send comments to Valerie Smothers at valerie.smothers@medbiq.org.
5. Conference Update
The MedBiquitous Consortium has decided to postpone its annual conference originally scheduled for November 28 and 29. We had planned to hold the event at the World Trade Center Baltimore, but changes in security practices have made it impossible to hold a large event in this building. Instead, we are hosting a series of "barn raising" meetings for the fall and winter. Barn raising is an Amish tradition in which members of the community come together to build a barn for a member of the community. Many people participate in the intensive, one-day effort. At the end of the day, the participants have constructed something that will benefit the community as a whole. Planned barn raising sessions include Member Management on October 23, Content Management on October 30, and E-detailing on November 28. These will be intensive, one-day efforts, and at the end of the day, we will have Working Drafts that will benefit our entire community. Barn raising is open to all consortium members. If you are interested in participating, contact info@medbiq.org. If you are unable to travel to the meeting, you can still participate in the working group that produces the final specifications.
6. Call for Participation
Does your organization need abstract management and collaboration tools? The MedBiquitous Consortium plans to begin working group discussions for Abstracts Management and Communication and Collaboration. If your organization is interested in participating in either of these areas, contact info@medbiq.org. Participation is open to all consortium members.
