Towards a common used terminology for Belgium

ended

"This project aims to increase the semantic interoperability of health data and to facilitate the cross-border exchange and re-use of health data in Belgium and abroad. The main objective supported by this project is ""the unambiguous and meaningful exchange of data between healthcare professionals"". A well-developed terminology policy should contribute to better communication between the various healthcare professionals and an increase in the quality of care, by enabling decision support and early warning systems, among other things. It also helps to reduce the administrative burden by facilitating derivation of information for secondary use (such as billing, quality control, scientific research and policy information). The high-level objectives of this project are: - The development of an operational coordination and expertise centre at the FPS Public Health on terminology (including SNOMED CT as central terminology standard) - The support of other projects, mentioned in the overall e-health program led by the Federal Government, making use of health information stored in a coded and structured manner to facilitate the use and re-use of health data for policy making and research. The task of the terminology centre is to define, coordinate, facilitate and stimulate the use of terminology standards in Belgian healthcare. Through a phased approach, the long-term goal is the full implementation of the terminology standard SNOMED CT in the Belgian healthcare sector. It aims to facilitate patient access to and understanding of their health data. "