Key takeaways:
- Guided workflows will help users to quickly complete the most common terminology management tasks, like creating mappings and dynamic references
- Seamless integration of FHIR into the TermBrowser
- Nudge users toward best practices for terminology management, like reuse of curated content
Through regular feedback sessions, we’re hearing that some of the most common terminology management tasks, like creating mappings or dynamic references, aren’t as easy as they could be. And many of OCL’s new, advanced features, like FHIR, dynamic references, and expansions, are sometimes difficult to use even for experienced terminologists.
Introducing smart dictionaries
That’s why the OCL community is excited to announce the start of a new community initiative to enhance OCL’s tools that puts users at the forefront.
Smart dictionaries will unlock powerful workflows to help users make the most of advanced terminology features through a simple, intuitive user-interface so they’re better able to leverage curated content like WHO SMART Guidelines, to adhere to best practices, and to reduce administrative burden.
Smart dictionaries will improve users’ ability to:
- Intuitively use dynamic and static references
- Customize and adapt content, like WHO SMART Guidelines, to local requirements
- React quickly to updated content with review and approval workflows
- Reuse trusted, curated content, like CIEL
- Propose new concepts or updates to existing ones, like a synonym or a missing mapping
- Manage versions and releases
- Simply compare versions
- Guide the creation of references and mappings
- Manage FHIR terminology resources to authoring of FHIR implementation guides
What’s next and how do I get involved?
The Smart Dictionary community initiative is a way to rally contributions around a longer-term shared goal that connects with nearly every aspect of the OCL community. Smart dictionaries will be a common topic in all of our meetings and will also be incorporated into the roadmap. In fact, some expected features of smart dictionaries are already defined in the 2023 OCL Community Roadmap (e.g. see Collaboration Workflows and Notifications and Dynamic Collection Workflows).
Our next step is to turn this vision for smart dictionaries into a concrete plan that the OCL community can collaboratively pursue. Expect the plan to include workflow design, co-creation sessions, and more.
The next Smart Dictionary design session will be held at OHIE23 in Malawi.
Please get in touch if you’d like to get involved in these early sessions!