The REST API is very easy to test using HTTP
requests from simple command tools such as cURL
or a web browser. Early in the project we were able
to create and deploy, in a few days, a full working
prototype of the API that was producing mocked-up
resources so that mobile clients were able to retrieve
sample data in the same fashion as the final API
production version.
During development we used a very small
footprint embedded java web server (TJWS) that
was running JUnit integration tests every time we
were compiling the project. As a result, the REST
API was always operational and ready to be
deployed as a war file to the staging server when
necessary.
On the client side, the very simple host, port and
base URL configuration is necessary to switch
between a staging and production server, which
makes development, testing and deploying
extremely easy.
The first version of our mobile health record will
be available late 2010 as a pilot program for a small
group of physicians participating in the New York
Rochester Regional Health Information
Organization (Rochester RHIO). It has already been
tested by the technical services of the New York
Rochester RHIO and we have incorporated changes
in the iPhone interface and REST API format to
support the variability of real world lab results
(which sometimes can be either incomplete or
contain badly formatted HL7 data sets).
Initially only the records of patients who have
provided consent will be accessible by the mobile
application. This represents, in Summer 2010
290,000 patients from more than 140 practices.
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