[Gnumed-devel] About systems of codification

[Jim Busser]

A brief exchange with a friend resulted in

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Hi Jim

Yes, I know about ICPC 2

For me there is one word that stands out "Classification"

ICPC, like ICD, are designed to classify. SNOMED is a Clinical Terminology, 
designed for clinicians. It is more granular and you can map "up" to less 
granular classification schemes.

I don't think SNOMED replaces ICD, I think it complements it. SNOMED hasn't 
been owned by CAP for several years. There is now a large international 
standards organization that owns and develops SNOMED.
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Therefore it sounds like if and when we would have available tools that better 
suit clinical specifics, we should use them in preference.

For this reason, I would suggest GNUmed praxes need to have the ability to 
enable / disable coding systems differentially. I think it is important to be 
able to do:

Soap (Subjective / History)                     LOINC
sOap (Objective / Physical)                     LOINC
soAp  (Assessment)                                      SNOMED-CT
soaP (Plan, treatment given)                    CPT

Reason for Encounter                                    ICD, ICPC 2
Outcome of Encounter                            ICD, ICPC 2

Measurements (test results) tables              LOINC

CPT = Current Procedural Terminology (American Medical Association)
ICD = International Classification of Diseases (WHO)
ICPC 2 = International Classification of Primary Care (WONCA)
LOINC = Logical Observation Identifiers Names and Codes (Regenstrief Institute, 
Inc)
SNOMED-CT = Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine--Clinical Terms (IHTSDO)

-- Jim