Standardization is the process of implementing and developing technical standards. Standardization can help to maximize compatibility, interoperability, safety, repeatability, or quality. It can also facilitate the commoditization of formerly custom processes. In social sciences, including economics, the idea of standardization is close to the solution for a coordination problem, a situation in which all parties can realize mutual gains, but only by making mutually consistent decisions. This view includes the case of “spontaneous standardization processes”, to produce de facto standards.
In healthcare and health informatics, standardisation means:
Using common formats, terminologies, and data models (e.g., SNOMED CT, HL7 FHIR)
Ensuring that data collected in different places or systems can be understood, shared, and reused without ambiguity
Improving efficiency, safety, and quality of care
Example: In Electronic Health Record systems, standardisation allows a blood pressure reading entered in one hospital to be automatically interpreted correctly by another system, thanks to shared coding like LOINC.
Definition: EHR standardization refers to the process of applying common structures, terminologies, and communication protocols to electronic health records to ensure consistency and interoperability across healthcare systems.
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