Individualization, globalization and health--about sustainable information technologies and the aim of medical informatics

This paper discusses aspects of information technologies for health care, in particular on transinstitutional health information systems (HIS) and on health-enabling technologies, with some consequences for the aim of medical informatics. It is argued that with the extended range of health information systems and the perspective of having adequate transinstitutional HIS architectures, a substantial contribution can be made to better patient-centered care, with possibilities ranging from regional, national to even global care. It is also argued that in applying health-enabling technologies, using ubiquitous, pervasive computing environments and ambient intelligence approaches, we can expect that in addition care will become more specific and tailored for the individual, and that we can achieve better personalized care. In developing health care systems towards transinstitutional HIS and health-enabling technologies, the aim of medical informatics, to contribute to the progress of the sciences and to high-quality, efficient, and affordable health care that does justice to the individual and to society, may be extended to also contributing to self-determined and self-sufficient (autonomous) life. Reference is made and examples are given from the Yearbook of Medical Informatics of the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA) and from the work of Professor Jochen Moehr.