TITLE:
Building an Architectural Component Model for a Telehealth Service
AUTHORS:
Alan Taylor, Greg Morris, Jennifer Tieman, David Currow, Michael Kidd, Colin Carati
KEYWORDS:
Architectural Models, eHealth, Telehealth in the Home, Healthcare Processes, Infrastructure, Infostructure, Governance
JOURNAL NAME:
E-Health Telecommunication Systems and Networks,
Vol.4 No.3,
September
16,
2015
ABSTRACT: Models of
services, processes and technology are useful tools for conceptualizing complex
systems such as healthcare. The application of a component architecture helps
illustrate the processes and technologies that are important to the operation
of a health service and conceptualize the relationships between each component.
Telehealth services are relatively recent and have characteristics that do not
fit neatly into established models of health services. This paper analyzes the
components used to build a telehealth in the home service in South Australia
and the design choices that were taken. The service used commodity-based
devices and systems to deliver simple to use, low-cost in the home care.
Building on this analysis, the components required in an architectural
component model of a telehealth service are identified enabling a provisional
architecture for telehealth services to be derived from an existing
internationally recognized architectural model for eHealth systems. Situated
within the broad family of eHealth architectures, a Telehealth Architectural
Model of telehealth processes, software, devices, common systems and ICT infrastructure
is proposed that represents the components required to support telehealth and
allows for customization of services according to clinical models of care.