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Writing Open Source Medical and Nursing Apps?
SteamedPenguin asks: "I am writing a Fick Cardiac Index calculator. It isn't quite finished, but it is almost done. I am bitten by the bug. Writing software, even simple software, in the health care field is fun. I see a good number of Slashdot readers who are either health care practitioners, or claim to be, so I am curious if there are are other nursing and medical tools out there that are written using Open Source languages, and/or are Open Source themselves. Google gives a good number. I am specifically interested in Open Source applications though. I am also interested to hear from people who are writing such software. Can these applications be released under the GPL? Are the algorithms proprietary? What resources are there for people who want to implement these small helper applications?"
Forgive me if this is covered somewhere on your site, but why do you use PHP to implement this?
If your server goes down, the tool is completely useless.
If, OTOH, you had used Javascript to process all this locally, then the webpage could be kept on a local machine and have the results immediately instead of having to load a second page.
As far as your program goes, you need to label the text boxes with the units measurements.
I have been pwned because my
My work style may change again, but for right now having a monolithic version for easy download is a big bonus. Not much use getting on the train, boat, airplane and discovering that I only got a portion of the material and probably won't make time later to try again.
Beta is broken and the link to classic doesn't work. Stop wasting our time or there won't be anybody left here.
Since I wrote the app for my own edification I don't see how the FDA gets involved. At best I have no control over who uses the application.
Most importantly though: a Cardiac Index can be calculated by hand or by using a pocket calculator. Does the FDA regulate pocket calculator outputs in hospitals?
Dixi et salvavi animam meam
I work for a pharma company and I do know CFR 21 Part 11, and you are wrong.
Developers can write anything they want, it's the implementation that must be validated. If a company says their software is CFR 21 Part 11 certified, they are lying. If you write software for a regulated industry, you won't be sued or shut down no matter how crappy it is. The company that implemented and used your software won't be so lucky, but it's up to them to perform the needed due diligence, not the SW dev.
Now, if you want your software to be used and appreciated, you should pay attention to the regs, which are quite voluminous and complicated (imagine that from our government). But common sense will get you very far in this if you consider that the regs are intended to make the companies accountable. Digital signatures, auditable logs, robust validation checks are all very good (the technical term is "non-repudiation"). If your software can be implemented in a way that makes it impossible for a single user to alter data "after the fact" without leaving an accountability trail, then it will be better than most of the commercial SW being sold into this market. The key phrase here is "can be implemented". The best software, poorly implemented, won't comply; so be sure the implementation and validation docs are good also.
In fact, document the thing to death and things will go well for you. It almost seems like quality is measured by the volume of documentation, the more the better.