SPLiCE: a software product line for healthcare

Abstract

In face of well-known inhibitor factors for the dissemination of Healthcare Information Systems (HIS) - "e.g., high development cost, lack of standardization, and technology-orientation" - model-driven engineering (MDE) in general, and OMG's model-driven architecture (MDA) in particular, has been referred to in the medical informatics literature as a cost-effective proposal to advance maintainable HIS. In this paper, we propose an MDE method for HISes that goes beyond MDA. This method seeks a higher degree of maintainability and reuse by adhering to three main principles: transversalization of data models and architecture models, dualization of information and clinical data models, and stylization of architecture models. To support this method on the generation of HIS skeletons, we are progressing work on the development of a software product line called SPLiCE (Software Product Line for healthCarE) that weaves together clinical data models described according to the openEHR specifications and architecture models specified in the Acme language.