Joint ITU-WHO Workshop on
e-Health Standards and Interoperability
(Geneva, Switzerland, 26-27 April 2012)
Introduction to session 7 “Advancing e-health standards: Roles
and responsibilities of stakeholders”
Marco Carugi
ITU-T SG13 vice-Chair, Q3/13 Rapporteur and
FG M2M Service Layer vice-Chair
ZTE Corporation
Marco.Carugi@zte.com.cn
Geneva, Switzerland, 26-27 April 2012
Information update on ITU-T Focus
Group on M2M Service Layer
Established in January 2012
First meeting: 17-18 April 2012, ITU, Geneva
Next meeting: 26-28 June 2012, Beijing, hosted by
CCSA/CATR, teleconference facilities available
To study requirements and specifications for a common
Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Service Layer
Cost-efficient platform
Across vertical markets
Multi-vendor environment
Initial focus of the Focus Group: E-Health
Working structure
WG1 Use cases and service models
WG2 Requirements and architectural framework of the M2M
Service Layer
WG3 API and protocols (it will start later)
NOTE : Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communications are considered to be a
key enabler of applications and services across a broad range of vertical
domains (e.g., health-care, logistics, transport, utilities, smart home etc.)
Information update (continued):
work programmes - 1
WG1 Use cases and service models
(E-Health) definitions, terminology, taxonomies
Use cases (templates ? which services (categories) ?)
Ecosystem including business roles and key actors
Service Models
WG2 Requirements and architectural
framework of the M2M Service Layer
Common understanding on M2M reference model and
M2M Service Layer
Requirements of the M2M Service Layer
common to different application domains
specific to E-Health
M2M Service Layer architectural framework: M2M
Service Layer capabilities and functional components,
reference points
Information update (continued):
work programmes - 2
WG3 API and protocols
Framework of APIs and protocols for M2M
APIs and protocols for specific M2M interfaces
High reusability of existing specifications is assumed
Need to identify specific interfaces - E-Health focus
Other planned deliverables
Collection of E-Health relevant activities from SDOs
Gap analysis (which level of analysis)
Action plan for future development of ITU-T standards
An usual recommendation from a closing FG
[the produced deliverables, potential work items
recommended for future work]
Information update (continued):
coordination aspects
FG M2M will coordinate with other standardization
efforts within and outside ITU-T
FG M2M aims at including vertical market
stakeholders that are not part of traditional ITU-T
membership and collaborating with M2M
communities worldwide (incl. research, academia)
WHO and Continua Health Alliance present at 1st
meeting, invitations planned to other SDOs
Input welcome: Focus Group is open to any
individual from a country which is a member of ITU
and willing to contribute
Please see the FG terms of Reference and additional
information at
www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/focusgroups/m2m/
Some messages concerning E-Health technical
standardization and interoperability I have
captured from workshop’s talks - 1
Fragmentation of standards, pilots, (techno-based) systems
Multiple stakeholders, multiple/lack of policies, uncertain
regulatory models, country and regional levels (but also
market driven, borderless)
Some existing standards could do much already but often not
well known/known only to some (education, implementation
practices)
A number of non-technical barriers to standards adoption and
compliance
Coordination of information, Collaboration and harmonization
among SDOs is needed
Shared vision: mission/expectations of E-Health in 5 years
Global and collaborative standards roadmap based on common
understanding of the work scope, priorities (services, technical
areas, system interfaces), which standards already exist,
which gaps and missing areas
Standards should be accessible to all and free of charge
Some messages concerning E-Health technical
standardization and interoperability I have
captured from workshop’s talks - 2
Interoperability, Compatibility, Scalability, Portability
QoS, Security and Privacy, still allowing the required
information exchange
Impact on standards of legal and regulatory frameworks (e.g.
digital signage, authentication)
Impact on standards of economic aspects (e.g. service models
and stakeholders, new business models)
Synergy between E-Health development and other ICT efforts:
digital agenda; cloud, grid, M2M and social/Web 2.0 technology
penetration in networks; smart mobile devices; global e-service
frameworks - but also consider E-Health specifics (cloud
quality label)
Exploit commonalities across different vertical application
domains operated on the same network infrastructure (e.g. EHealth, ITS, smart home etc.)
Some messages concerning E-Health technical
standardization and interoperability I have
captured from workshop’s talks - 3
Flexible approaches in standards development (e.g. profiles,
templates, incremental interoperability, cross-border targets)
“Semantically annotated Web Services” as promising interim
approach for interoperability
Application adaptation to environmental technical constraints
(e.g. to mobile device capabilities)
Technical platforms are a good supporting tool to
show/validate usage of standards (implementation practices)
Interoperability events are also very useful
Global dialogue towards E-Health standards and
interoperability should continue under coordination of WHO
and ITU involving all relevant stakeholders
Session 7 “Advancing e-health
standards: Roles and
responsibilities of stakeholders”
This session is to capture your
inputs for development of the
next steps of the expected
collaborative effort
Which (categories of) stakeholders ?
Users (patients, communities, health institutions,
governments etc.)
Medical staff (doctors, experts, hospitals etc.)
Partners (e.g. application developers)
Vendors and operators of device, network and service
infrastructure
Standards Development Organizations
Policy makers, regulators
Donors (and coordination among them)
Others ?
Which Roles and Responsibilities ?
Priorities, technical requirements, identified issues ?
Session 7 chair’s personal inputs on
technical aspects
Identification of (categories of) stakeholders
Their roles and responsibilities in E-Health value chain
Shared technical ground and work scope: which services
and use cases, service models, environment
assumptions, terminology and taxonomies, global
architecture framework ?
Priorities, technical requirements and identified issues
from each stakeholder (category)
SDOs’ landscape positioning, E-Health standards status
Gap analysis of these (technical) standards
Global and shared E-Health standards roadmap (items
and priorities, stakeholders’ roles and responsibilities)
Collaboration in progressing the roadmap
Validation of the progress (e.g. interoperability events
etc.)