The purpose of this Technical Report is to define a framework of good practices for terminology system maintenance and the principles for which conformance can be demonstrated. The primary focus is the application of terminology system to Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems, although the principles and guidelines can be applied broadly in health informatics

The scope of this Technical Report will include, at a minimum, the following considerations for keeping terminology systems and associated reference material clinically and/or technically relevant and valid:

The scope of this Technical Report will not include a definition of the detailed processes for performing terminology maintenance.

This Technical Report aims to define the framework of good practices for EHRs and systems regarding terminology maintenance within these systems. This Technical Report relates directly to the ability of these records to be safe and legally accurate records of healthcare in the environment of changing technologies related to the use of clinical terminologies to represent meaning within these systems.