Glossary of Terms

February 06, 2012
RESOURCE TYPE
Tools & Topics
FILE TYPE
PDF
DATE ADDED
February 6, 2012
AUTHOR(S)
mHIMSS

Term
Definition
2G, 3G, 4G
Second, Third and Fourth “Generation” cellular telecommunication standards. 1G began the 1980’s, 2G was introduced in the 1990’s, 3G was launched in early 2001. 4G promises to provide a secure all-IP solution that is much faster than previous generations.
ACO
Accountable Care Organization. An ACO is a healthcare payment model that establishes groups of healthcare providers that link reimbursement incentives to certain quality of care metrics and reductions in cost for a population of patients. An ACO is essentially a network of physicians and hospitals that share the risk in providing patient care.
AWS-1 or UMTS band IV, is a wireless telecommunications spectrum band used for mobile voice and data services, video, and messaging. AWS-1 is used in the United States and Canada. It replaces some of the spectrum formerly allocated to Multipoint Multichannel Distribution Service (MMDS), sometimes referred to as Wireless Cable, that existed from 2150 to 2162 MHz.
 
The AWS band uses microwave frequencies in two segments: from 1710 to 1755 MHz for uplink, and from 2110 to 2155 MHz for downlink.[1] The service is intended to be used by mobile devices such as wireless phones for mobile data, video, and messaging services.
 Refers to an interface that allows for interaction between different software programs. This is much like an interface that allows interaction between humans and computers.
App
App is term originally used by the IT community for many years; it is short for “software application”. More recently, it has become a common term denoting a small program that is downloaded to a mobile phone or tablet to provide added functionality.
ARRA
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. An economic stimulus bill enacted by the 111th Congress that provides $30 billion for various health IT (HIT) investments. Some of this funding was allocated by CMS to promote physicians and hospital providers to adopt certified EHRs. Some $2 billion was allocated by HHS for telemedicine projects.
Authentication
 The act of confirming that the subject or subject matter is true.
 A measure of available or consumed data communication resources expressed in bit(s) or multiples of it (kbit, Mbit, etc).  Many applications designed for developing countries are too heavy for the limited bandwidth in those countries. Specialized applications often need to be developed to thrive in these low bandwidth environments. 
 Any of several protocols used in second generation (2G) and third generation (3G) wireless communications, which allows numerous signals to occupy a single transmission channel, optimizing the use of available bandwidth. 
CDRs
Clinical Data Repositories. A database containing clinical information or PHI/PHRs.
  Defines the delivery of hosted services via the internet. For example, software, infrastructure or platforms can be sold to users when in demand.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. A division of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) that was previously known as the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA). One of the responsibilities of CMS is to manage certain aspects of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
 A method for transferring data by dividing it into smaller blocks.  The advantage of data packets is that a user utilizes limited network resources when transferring data (this differs from “circuit-switch data” which must have an open connection and uses resources even when idle.)  Today most data on the internet and cellphone networks travel in data packets.
 An electronic certificate that verifies the authentication of a web site, individuals, or software developers. This ID is used to prove who you are on the internet.
 An international collaboration of governments, private sector, non-profit organizations and international organizations from developed and developing countries.  Their goal is to identify the ways in which the digital revolutions can benefit people around the world, especially the poorest and most marginalized. 
Effectiveness Research
 Refers to research that focuses upon the impact and effectiveness of interventions or campaigns.
Electronic Health. The application of Internet and other healthcare technologies to improve the access, efficiency, effectiveness, and quality of clinical and business processes utilized by healthcare organizations, practitioners, patients, and consumers in an effort to improve the health status of patients.
 A systematic collection of electronic health information on individuals or populations.  It allows for global connection to massive amounts of medical data for research and patient care. 
 Refers to Electronic Medical Records and Electronic Health Records
 A rigorous description of an enterprise including a map of relationships between its systems and subsystems and business processes.
 A low-end mobile phone that has less computing ability than a smartphone.
 An independent non-profit organization created to support the mission of the National Institutes of Health.
Gen-Z
Generation Z. Individuals born from approximately 1995 to present day. Typically the term refers to tech savvy persons.
 A joint department of the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC)that promotes access to information and communication technologies in developing countries.
  This is any system that computes, stores, analyzes and presents geographically referenced data.  GISs allow analysis of epidemiological data in relation to population settlements, health services, and the environment.  Some applications include urban planning, natural resource management and emergency management. 
 Used by GSM mobile phones to transmit IP packets. 
 Global navigation satellite system that provides positioning, navigation, and timing information.
 This system is the world’s most popular for mobile phone technology, largely in Europe and Asia. It allows for international roaming arrangements between mobile carriers and enables phone usage around the world.
 Represents the world mobile communications interests
HIPAA
Health Information Portability and Accountability Act. PL 104-191 was enacted by congress in 1996. The Administrative Simplification section (Title II) established national standards for electronic health transactions as well as identifying certain security and privacy standards for health data.
 A computer system capable of storing, analyzing, and displaying health data. 
HIT
Health Information Technology. 
HITECH Act
Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act. The HITECH Act is part of the ARRA that addresses privacy and security concerns related to the transmission of electronic health information. The HITECH Act broadened the scope of privacy and security measures for PHRs under HIPAA, and also increased certain legal liabilities for non-compliance.
 An online meeting place and community for those who care about transforming health systems to improve health outcomes, especially in low and middle-income countries. HUB aggregates health content, facilitates idea exchange, and creates community between the diverse constituencies that can benefit from, and improve access to, health information and care.
 Refers to the application of Information and Communication Technologies for socioeconomic development.
 A set of technological tools and resources used to communicate, create, disseminate, store, and manage information. 
  This global development financing program was founded and largely supported by the World Bank.  It promotes dialogue and coordinates joint action among bilateral and multilateral donors by supporting global sharing of information on ICT for development and helps to reduce duplication of efforts and investment. 
Information Technology.
 This is the United Nations agency for information and communication technology issues.  ITU has coordinated the global use of the radio spectrum, promoted international assignment of satellite orbits, worked to improve telecommunication infrastructure in the developing world, established standards for the interconnection of a range of communication systems and addressed other pressing issues such as climate change and cybersecurity.
 A software application that accepts a combination of voice telephone input and touch-tone keypad selection.
 Programming language and computing platform that is used by several applications online. This platform allows for interactive games, videos, demos, etc to appear on your web browser.
 A device of program that is able to use Java, a general purpose, concurrent, class-based, and object-oriented intended to let application developers “write once, run anywhere.”  Java was created with the intention of allowing programs to run similarly on any supported hardware/operating-system platform.
 An open source platform for data collection on mobile devices. At its core, JavaRosa is based on the XForms standard – the official W3C standard for next-generation data collection and interchange.  It is written in Java Mobile Edition (J2ME), and supports a wide array of devices, from top-end smartphones and large PDAs with large screens and abundant memory, to low-end devices like Nokia 6085 and 2630, making JavaRosa usable in low-resource environments.
 A not for profit organization focused on furthering Computer/IT based healthcare solutions for the developing world.
 A computer network known for its high data-transfer rates, smaller geographic areas, and lack of a need for leased telecommunication lines. 
 A new radio platform technology that provides an extremely high performance radio-access technology .
The LTE standard can be used with many different frequency bands. In North America, 700/ 800 and 1700/ 1900 MHz are planned to be used; 800, 1800, 2600 MHz in Europe; 1800 and 2600 MHz in Asia; and 1800 MHz in Australia.[24][25][26][27][28][29] As a result, phones from one country may not work in other countries. Users will need a multi-band capable phone for roaming internationally.
M4D (Mobile Communication for Development)
 Refers to using mobile technologies for socioeconomic development
 Refers to the intersection of information science, computer science and health care.
 This alliance brings together organizations working for mobile health around the world such as, the Rockefeller Foundation, Vodafone and United Nations Foundation.
mMoney
 Refers to mobile money that may be sent from one location to another. Usually, money is sent from urban areas to rural areas.
 Describes a variety of portable devices which gains access to the internet through wireless high speed, portals or other devices.
mServices
 Services, such as transactions, communications, information dispersion and data collection, completed through mobile devices and technologies.
mTransactions
 Refers to monetary transactions made via mobile devices.
National Broadband Plan
An FCC plan that was encouraged by ARRA that extends and improves broadband internet access in the United States. 
 
A computer network, often simply referred to as a network, is a collection of hardware components and computers interconnected by communication channels that allow sharing of resources and information.[1] Where at least one process in one device is able to send/receive data to/from at least one process residing in a remote device, then the two devices are said to be in a network.
 Can refer to computer software sources that are publicly available. Generally, open source refers to when the means to an end-product is open to all users.
 A technology that is publicly available and is often maintained and approved by collaborative forces as opposed to a single vendor
 Computer software for which the source code is not protected by copyright and is freely available and modifiable by the public. 
At the most basic level Personal Communications Service or PCS describes a set of wireless communications capabilities that allows some combination of terminal mobility, personal mobility, and service profile management.[1] More specifically, PCS refers to any of several types of wireless voice and/or wireless data communications systems, typically incorporating digital technology, providing services similar to advanced cellular mobile or paging services.
PHI
As defined by the HITECH Act: “An electronic record or PHR identifiable health information on an individual that can be drawn from multiple sources and that is managed, shared, and controlled by - or primarily for - the individual”
PHR
Personal Health Record.
PPACA
Patient Protection and Affordability Act. A U.S. health reform law that ensures that Americans have access to quality medical care. Section 3022 of the PPACA creates a Medicare Shared Savings Plan that allows ACO’s to contract with the Medicare division of CMS.
 The use of electronic information and communication technologies by healthcare providers to collect and monitor data from patients remotely.
 A micro-chip that stores the service-subscriber key used to identify a subscriber on mobile devices.  The SIM card holds personal information such as names and phone numbers.  Multiple SIM cards can be used in a single phone (although not concurrently). 
 A mobile phone with more advanced computing ability and connectivity than a feature phone.  They often have powerful processors, abundant memory and larger screens and are thought of as handheld computers. 
 Text message communication on phones and mobile phones.  It allows the exchange of a short (less than 160 characters) message between mobile devices.
Stakeholder
A person, group, or organization that has a vested interest in mHealth (e.g., Pharma, Payors, Providers, Device manufactures, Telecom carriers, App developers, Venture Capital firms, Policy makers.)
Differs from Telemedicine as it provides clinical and non-clinical services related to health education, research or administration.
The use of telecom and various IT solutions to provide clinical care at a remote location from the caregiver.
 A technology that allows you to make calls using a broadband internet connection instead of a regular (or analog) phone line.  Some VoIP services only allow calls to people using the same service, but other services may allow calls to anyone who has a telephone number- including local, long distance, mobile, and internet numbers.  Also, while some VoIP services only work over a computer or special VoIP phone, other services allow the use of traditional phones connected to a VoIP adapter. 
 An open international standard for application-layer network communications in a wireless communications environment.  Most uses of WAP involve accessing the Web from a mobile phone.
WiFi, is a mechanism that allows electronic devices to exchange data wirelessly over a computer network. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, tablet, or digital audio player, can connect to a network resource such as the Internet via a wireless network access point.