Medical practice management system (Electronic Health Records, EHR) OpenEMR released 5.0.1, this version adds many important features, including patient portal page, institutional billing, free electronic prescription and support for basic FHIR. In addition, the community is also intensively developing modern installation kits, applying technologies such as containerization, Docker images, and native cloud services.
OpenEMR was developed in 2002 and was initially used only for personal use, but as open source software, it has been supported by more and more developers and professionals, and is now an ONC-certified complete electronic health record system. Backed by 40 companies, downloaded more than 4,000 times a month, used in more than 100 countries, serving more than 200 million patients, OpenEMR is recognized as the world's most popular open source electronic health record and medical practice management solution.
Dr. Brady Miller, OpenEMR project administrator and physician, said that the new version of OpenEMR adds a number of features, showing the diversity and activity of the community. This new release adds patient system portal, institutional billing, DICOM image browser, free electronic prescribing, and support for basic FHIR, as well as a reminder module, a group therapy module, a support activity directory, and a directory for clinical roles.
In addition to the addition of new functions, the original functional modules have also been updated, including user interface, graphics, file management, encryption and other security functions and patient tracking. In addition, internationalization and localization have also been significantly improved. Now OpenEMR supports a total of 34 languages.
The new patient portal page supports a wealth of new functions, using a modern interface, supporting safety message notifications, timetable scheduling, online payment, chat interaction, as well as custom form functions and new patient logins. In addition, FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources) is supported with the aim of paving the way for future interoperability with other healthcare systems.
Among the new functions, the DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) image browser is also a major update. Its windowed operation mode allows users to pan, zoom, and enable basic image viewing functions such as filters. OpenEMR developer Victor Kofia mentioned that they are working to close the gap between the operating experience of imaging systems and EMR systems.
The OpenEMR community is also working on modern installation technologies, including containerization, Docker images, and native cloud services. OpenEMR now supports Docker image installation, the overall process is much simpler than the traditional installation process, which can reduce the technical barriers required to enable and operate OpenEMR, and also help OpenEMR development and testing.
OpenEMR contributor and medical student Jason Oettinger said that cloud technology and containerization will make the developer's work easier. He mentioned that the community is only demonstrating the capabilities of OpenEMR to developers and medical personnel, and can set up test servers. Executed in the cloud, the whole process saves a lot of trouble.
From: ithome