NIST Syndromic Surveillance Test Suite 2015 Edition

Abstract

ObjectiveThe NIST Syndromic Surveillance Test Suite for 2015 EditionONC certification testing was published in February 2016. Keyinformation related to the purpose, development, and use of thisconformance test tool is provided via snapshots on a poster.IntroductionDetails about the ONC 2015 Edition certification criteria forSyndromic Surveillance and the related NIST Test Suite wereexplained previously. We now provide an overview and keyinformation regarding updates to the Test Suite and how it is designedto be used.MethodsSnapshots are provided on a poster and are used by the presenterto explain the steps involved in developing the NIST SyndromicSurveillance Test Suite 2015 Edition, to show key features of andupdates to the Test Suite, and to illustrate the relationship of the TestSuite to various releases of the PHIN Messaging Guide for SyndromicSurveillance.ResultsThe NIST Syndromic Surveillance Test Suite for 2015 EditionONC certification testing was published in February 2016. As thetarget stakeholders began using it and providing feedback, this tooland associated documentation were updated. The Test Suite is beingused by test labs for ONC certification testing of health informationtechnologies, by developers in preparation for certification testing,and ultimately by public health jurisdictions for on-boarding ofprovider organizations that need to submit surveillance data.ConclusionsAutomated conformance test tools enable validation of healthinformation technologies’ ability to support the requirementspublished in the PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance.Having this standard and the means to validate conformance helpsdrive the industry toward the level of interoperability needed topromote efficient reporting and utilization of syndrome-based publichealth surveillance information.