Initial Project Information: VATAM
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VATAM

Validation of telematics applications in medicine

[ Coordinator(s) ] [ Participants ] [ Project Objectives, ... ] [ Other Characteristics ]

Project Nr: HC 1115 Group: VII Project Duration: 36 months
Key words:
Category:Improved Validation of Health Care Telematics
Summary: Accompanying measure on criteria and methods for the validation of projects with emphasis on health care. Based on the results of other EU funded projects primarily ATIM.
Mission:The purpose of VATAM is to take stock of EU research project validation of health care telematics applications, with a view to enhancing them. Eight projects piloting VATAM may apply its methodologies voluntarily. The initiative will make recommendations to improve validation and provide guidelines for tackling it on a consensus basis. General health telematics guidelines will also be tested, validated and publicly discussed from the angle of quality assurance and technology assessment. In addition, VATAM will spread the use of validation methods and tools and investigate the potential for marketing them.
URL: www-vatam.unimaas.nl/

Coordinator(s)

  • Mr. John Enning
    HISCOM BV, Research and Development
    PO Box 901
    Schipholweg, 97
    NL-2316 XA Leiden
    The Netherlands     		tel: +31-71-5256862
    fax: +31-71-5219856
    vatam@hiscom.nl
    url:

Participants:

Name of InstitutionCity+Postal CodeCountryRegion
Universiteit Maastricht Maastricht 6200 HA Netherlands NL42
KMPG Unternehmensberatung Gmbh Berlin 10719 Germany DE3
CNEH Paris 75014 France FR1
VTT Information Technology Espoo 02044 VTT Finland FI
IMAS BarcelonaE-08007 Spain ES51
GESI Roma, I-00195 It IT
CERIM Lille, F-59045 France FR
GPUG Ghent B-9000 Belgium BE25
DHI Copenhagen, 1119 Denmark DK
BULL Erkrath. D-40699 Germany DEA1
MARI Gateshead, NE8 1HE United Kingdom UK13
GSF-MEDIS Ismaning, 85737 Germany DE21
Royal Brompton Hospital London, SW3 6NP United Kingdom UK55
Broussais University Hospital Paris, 75014 France FR75

Project Objectives, Summary Description and Anticipated Results

The overall goal of VATAM is to consolidate the results of validation in projects in the health telematics area. VATAM provides methodologies, supports validation in health telematics projects and enhances dissemination of validation results. Eight health telematics projects (COCO, DIABCARD, HANSA, HORIZON, ISAR-T, PRESTIGE, SAMMIE-II, SYNAPSES) directly take part in VATAM. Each health telematics project can apply VATAM methodologies on a voluntary basis. VATAM includes:
  • evaluation of the validations providing recommendations for improvement of validation procedures;
  • development of general guidelines for validation approach by consensus development, together with validators of the eight projects and external experts; A first draft form of these guidelines will be available and disseminated in a diffusion workshop in 1996;
  • test and validation of general guidelines in health telematics and by presenting the guidelines for discussion at the working conference of WG 15 of the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA) in 97. this WG 15 deals with quality assurance and technology assessment. Guidelines will be updated subsequently, disseminated, and will be finalised by the end of 1998. They will be presented at the Health Telematics Final Conference;
  • providing a platform for dissemination of validation methods, tools and results through (amongst others) internet, WWW, presentations at conferences, tutorials and courses and visibility at concertation meetings. VATAM includes a study of the market for assessment methods and tools;

    Base on a European-wide consensus and offering methods, tools, expertise, literature databases and education segments, the validation framework will open the market for Technology assessment as a rational means to validate Health Telematics applications. Effects of applications; whether cost savings, productivity gains, improved quality of care of Health Telematics applications. Effects of applications; whether cost savings, productivity gains, improved quality of care of Health process redesign can be proved to exist, instead of just indicated on a small scale in the past. This will provide an excellent opportunity for assessors in Europe in general and the consortium members in particular to open the market for their constancy activities and tools. In the long term, adequate validation will open the market of telematics and products and services in health care and will help decrease costs and improve quality.

    • Other Characteristics of the Project:

    Users involved
    The users of VATAM results are first of all the validators in 4th framework health telematics projects. Moreover all who use validation results : healthcare policy makers, healthcare professionals and managers in general.
    Technologies and/or approach used
    The VATAM approach is based on existing validation methodologies from e.g. informatics, medical technology assessment and social sciences and as have been developed in earlier Framework programs: e.g. FEST, TEASS, PRIMACARE, KAVAS, four stages of EDP-growth model and general approaches such as RCCT, consensus development mechanisms, cost-modelling and Activity-Based-Costing. Moreover the VATAM approach is based on validation approaches developed in participating projects.
    Expected benefits for the citizen
    Possibility for more cost-effective application of scarce health-care resources. Methodologies provided by VATAM will allow selection of the most cost-effective health telematics applications
    Expected benefits for the users of the application
    Insight into potential impact of various types of health telematics applications, which is bases on solid research, generalizable and derived by generally agreed methods.
    Expected benefits for the European Industries
    Tools are made available that allow demonstration of cost-effectiveness of IT Products. this can be used in e.g. marketing health telematics.
    Contribution to EU-policies
    Standardisation of methods for validation of health telematics applications across Europe.

    Validation Sites

    COCO Danish Hospital Institute Copenhagen DK
    DIABCARD GSF-MEDIS Ismaning DE
    HANSA GESI Roma IT
    HORIZON The MARI Group Limited Gateshead UK
    ISAR-T CERIM-Faculté de Médecine Lille Cedex FR
    PRESTIGE Royal Brompton Hospital London UK
    SAMMIE-II BULL S.A. Erkrath DE
    SYNAPSES Broussais University Hospital Paris FR

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