Unfortunately, Geoff, when it comes to interoperability, nothing is simple. If you follow Tim Gee's blog (http://medicalconnectivity.com) you can see how complicated things can become, as soon as you try to standardize things. In the past, many standards (OpenInterface, MDIL, MIB) were proposed as standards for medical device connectivity. Some manufacturers invested heavily in complying to those standards - but in the end, no one else did. That left the industry fractured with many different "standards", with hardly anyone willing to invest in the next great thing. I hope IHE will succeed where other efforts have failed.

Chandana Samaranayake MD

Chandana Samaranayake is an employee of Philips Healthcare.
All comments made on this forum are made on a personal capacity, and do not necessarily represent the views of my employer.

As per FDA guidelines on on-line communication, please note that the Intended Use of a Philips IntelliVue product is as stated in the Instructions for Use document.