Over at LMN: Live from the 2003 Fall AMIA Conference. This is Ignacio's version of the EHR session. He types faster (and has better batteries) than I do. Neither of us liked what we heard — but for different reasons, it seems.
I'm not bothered at all about the code. Open source of the code that's behind the software is simply unnecessary. Good software can be "closed source" and still be good. The key is that our data be accessible. With many EMR's the data is locked forever. It's a real problem and dates back to the age of the dinosaurs.
A key (and laudible) component of the AAFP project is that the data remain accessible.
Closed source products will never be priced well enough to gain acceptance. Nor will they EVER be flexible enough to meet many different doctors needs. What we need is talented programmers to have access to Open Source EHR/EMRs. 1000s of programmers around the world – with many different coding specialties contributing to a global open source EMR.
Most doctors who spend money on a closed source project now will basically find their systems obsolete in a few years. What is needed is an Open EHR the world can work on. It is also a dream to believe that data will port well between closed source EMRs.
Open Source EMR underlines key principles that should be a part of medicine. The health of patients is the key, not corporate profits. Doctors should think twice before wasting their money on closed source products.