Homeopathy software's for documenting clinical cases. The speeches and the subsequent discussion had as its central axle the following questions: - What are the difficulties to foster the integration of clinical case databases generated in different platforms available to the homoeopaths?
- What are the possible solutions to promote computational interactivity between different software's for clinical cases in homoeopathy?
The speakers have been Carlo Maria Rezzani, developer of WinC.H. I.P. , linked to RADAR, Carlos Rodriguez, representing Alberto Espin, developer of Homeobase, and David Witko, developer of C.A. R.A. During debate time with the public, we have been able to count on the informal participation of Hans Nieuwenhuijs, developer of The Homeopathic Recorder, whose contribution has also been of big value for the quality of the discussion.
One of the conclusions of this second part of the meeting refers to the fact that the solutions developed by the different clinical documenting software's also reflect the difficult option between the two above mentioned approaches. Clinical file programs in homoeopathy are not only different among themselves, they do also have different goals which reflect the aforementioned approach polarity between data-orientation and outcome-orientation. Although they seem to be divergent when compared side by side, from the point of view of the scientist they are complementary indeed.
The most important conclusion, absolutely consensual among all the software developers, is that nowadays there is no more technological barrier which could prevent us from developing computational interactivity among all the different clinical file programs. The only barriers that nowadays exist in this sphere have political and economical nature. The technological level of the software's is very similar among themselves, and any new element which is developed in this professional environment is quickly followed by the competitors. All the speakers then have fully agreed with the idea that the commercial and political-institutional competition in this field without the possibility of database interactivity turns out to become increasingly hazardous for homoeopathy. Unanimously all of them publicly declared themselves favourable and disposed to co-operatively work in the interactivity direction, so that in the future all the homoeopaths will be able to interchange clinical cases with colleagues, independently of the program which would be used in each individual practice.
Although in the last moment we have not been able to count with the presence of Jawahar Shah, developer of HOMPATH, who had enthusiastically accepted our invitation to participate in the round-table, he has communicated to us, after the congress, that he has already discussed with his programming staff about the conclusions of the meeting, and has received a green sign from them to the perspective of developing interactivity with the other software's of our area.
Already with a bicentennial history, marked by a series of divisions and separations between homoeopaths, from technical, ideological and political-institutional nature, homoeopathy have demonstrated in the last years to suffer from two new dimensions of separatism between its peers. Represented by the different computational interfaces, the technological barrier, as well as its companion, the commercial-financial barrier reveal to configurate themselves as strong contemporary influences that are drawing the technoscientific map of homoeopathy.
The public declaration of the participants, unanimously disposed to cooperate in the development of informational interactivity among the different clinical case programs, might represent a significant mark in our science's history. It will be up to us, clinicians, to create the necessary demand for the developers in such a way that this agreement might become a reality.
The lesson which has been left by the disarmed, scientific, and non-competitive spirit of the meeting's exposers reaffirm us the belief that convergence is the way by excellence to diminish the isolationism that reinvents the wheel and to foster the scientific and social evolution of homoeopathy.
No comments:
Post a Comment