Healthcare systems in the United States are embracing advanced digital health tools more rapidly than ever, thanks to the introduction of the Digital Medicine Outcomes Value Set (DOVeS). This innovative ontology promises to enhance the discovery, comparison, and implementation of digital medicine products tailored to specific health outcomes.
Developing the DOVeS Ontology
Collaborating with diverse stakeholders—including industry experts, healthcare providers, payers, regulators, and patients—the Accelerated Digital Clinical Ecosystem (ADviCE) consortium spearheaded the creation of DOVeS. Utilizing the Web Ontology Language and an open-source editor, the team built upon an existing hierarchical taxonomy and incorporated data from 185 vendors. This collaborative effort ensured that DOVeS is both comprehensive and adaptable, aligning with principles set by the Open Biological and Biomedical Ontologies Foundry.
Enhancing Tool Implementation and Regulation
With over 42,000 axioms and nearly 9,500 distinct classes, DOVeS offers a robust framework for healthcare organizations to assess digital health tools based on desired outcomes. Additionally, regulators and vendors can leverage this ontology to determine the substantial equivalence of new tools to existing predicate devices, fostering a more streamlined approval process.
Key Inferences:
- DOVeS facilitates targeted selection of digital health tools by focusing on specific patient outcomes.
- Integration of established ontologies like MONDO enhances reliability and compatibility.
- The decentralized collaboration model promotes continuous improvement and stakeholder engagement.
Field-testing with 40 independent vendors validated DOVeS’s applicability across diverse digital medicine products. The development of a prototype DHT Application Finder further exemplifies its practical utility, allowing users to efficiently locate tools that meet their specific outcome criteria.
Available publicly on BioPortal and GitHub under a Creative Commons license, DOVeS invites ongoing contributions and modifications from the global health community. This openness ensures that the ontology will evolve to meet emerging needs and support the dynamic landscape of digital health technologies.
Empowering healthcare organizations with the ability to systematically evaluate and implement digital health tools based on measurable outcomes can lead to more effective patient care and streamlined regulatory processes. By adopting DOVeS, stakeholders are better equipped to navigate the complexities of digital medicine, ultimately enhancing the quality and accessibility of healthcare services.
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