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We demand open source healthcare

We must set healthcare free

Open Source (OS) Software is

something that anyone can change and share, because it's publicly available under a generous license. While it first began with computer code, open source now influences how projects and businesses work, and our lives benefit from this open sharing. Open source has grown into a way of participating with many others that asks for transparency, community-based collaboration, and meritocracy. The best ideas float to the top, and you earn trust by what you do and how you amplify the group.

Our internet is infused with open source ideas and services — from how cell phones communicate, to how e-mail is directed from one person to the next, to Linux. All of these technologies working together are the operating system of the internet.

Here in the US, healthcare is
sometimes amazing,
often lifesaving,
always expensive,
and mostly closed.

It's tribal at its core — each hospital, each doc, each healthcare system invents its own way —to the detriment of our collective health.

Healthcare is too important to be closed.

We have open standards
for finance,

because we value our money more than our health.

We have open standards
for transportation

because getting to the destination is a necessity.

We need open standards
for healthcare

because our lives depend on it.

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Editors

Open EHRs Are Going Global

Creating, updating, and reconciling medical records is one of the most visible areas where technology has shaped healthcare. While most electronic health record (EHR) systems remain proprietary, over 30 countries now use open source EHRs in some capacity.2

Founded in a rich legacy of global initiative to meet shared, human needs, successful open source healthcare IT initiatives are not only taking a hold in the United States3 but also spreading to many other communities in the world.

More evidence

The path towards health IT transformation

Nine Organizing Principles of Open Source Healthcare

A framework for responsible use and management of patient health data and information for the advancement of health quality, health research, and data ownership.

  1. Simple National Standard
  2. Cost Transparency
  3. Responsible Use
  4. Data Usage Transparency
  5. Transactional Care
  6. Own Your Data
  7. Share Your Data
  8. Health Data as a Public Resource
  9. Community Engagement
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Work with us towards the open source future

We work with our clients on open source products that impact millions of lives every year. We’ve also worked on a number of our own open source products as well.

OS Projects

Clients

  • AHRQ
  • HHS
  • CMS
  • NIH
  • California Healthcare Foundation
  • State of Massachusetts
  • MITRE
  • Walgreens
Get in touch

References

  1. F. Aminpour, F. Sadoughi, and M. Ahamdi. Utilization of open source electronic health record around the world: A systematic review. Journal of Research in Medical Sciences: The Official Journal of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 57-64. 2014.
  2. Frequently Asked Questions. Medsphere. 2018. Accessed 3 Jan 2018.