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. 2003 Sep-Oct;10(5):433-43.
doi: 10.1197/jamia.M1264. Epub 2003 Jun 4.

The syntax and semantics of the PROforma guideline modeling language

David R Sutton  1 , John Fox
Affiliations

The syntax and semantics of the PROforma guideline modeling language

David R Sutton et al. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2003 Sep-Oct.

Abstract

PROforma is an executable process modeling language that has been used successfully to build and deploy a range of decision support systems, guidelines, and other clinical applications. It is one of a number of recent proposals for representing clinical protocols and guidelines in a machine-executable format (see <www.openclinical.org>). In this report, the authors outline the task model for the language and provide an operational semantics for process enactment together with a semantics for expressions, which may be used to query the state of a task during enactment. The operational semantics includes a number of public operations that may be performed on an application by an external agent, including operations that change the values of data items, recommend or make decisions, manage tasks that have been performed, and perform any task state changes that are implied by the current state of the application. Disclosure: PROforma has been used as the basis of a commercial decision support and guideline technology Arezzo (Infermed, London, UK; details in text).

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
A simple PROforma application.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Deployment of Tallis components in the guideline development environment.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Deployment of Tallis components when enacting a guideline over the Web.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
A Simple PROforma guideline.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Sequence diagram shows the use of the guideline shown in ▶.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
The PROforma component set.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Task state transitions. An arrow between two states indicates that a transition between those states is possible. The circumstances in which the transition would actually occur are too complex to show in the diagram.
Figure 8.
Figure 8.
Example of engine state.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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