Over the next three weeks, we’ll look at the programming languages that have served as the backbone of EHRs through the years. It’s these languages that give EHRs the ability to function.
Today we kick the series off with MUMPS, the AARP-member of EHR programming languages.
A Quick History Lesson
MUMPS, or Massachusetts General Hospital Utility Multi-Programming System, was developed by A. Neil Pappalardo and Curt W. Marble in the late 1960s. The hospital originally used it in the admissions cycle and for laboratory reporting.
Eventually, usage of MUMPS spread throughout the healthcare industry, and it was used as the programming language for the first EHRs. The almost 45-year-old language is still used today by some EHR vendors, which doesn’t sit well with some people.
MUMPS Explained
MUMPS was designed specifically to build database applications. That’s why the healthcare industry, which relies heavily on patient databases like EHRs, uses MUMPS so extensively.
It can be looked at as the minimalist EHR language, eliminating as many unnecessary components as possible. This minimalist nature was born out of necessity since the memory of late ’60s computer hardware was extremely limited.
This means MUMPS developers have to use as many abbreviations as possible when writing code. Commands in MUMPS are limited from one to three characters in length. Thus, an idea in MUMPS can be expressed in far fewer characters than is needed in most other programming languages.
EHRs perform functions based on the “routine” set up in MUMPS. Routines are simply lines of commands that are set up in a sequence. The order of commands tells the EHR when to perform certain functions. It’s easiest to think of a MUMPS routine as a daily routine that a person would follow.
The problem with MUMPS as an EHR language is that, quite frankly, it’s old. As a result, it doesn’t operate well with other languages and might not be able to handle the storage needs of the future. This could stagnate innovation in the healthcare industry.
To sum it all up, MUMPS is simply a memory-usage efficient computer language used to build databases and follows sets of instructions to function. Of course there are more intricacies to it, but that’s for programmers to handle.
Do you think that an EHRs programming language matters?
Do you know what you need when setting up a new medical practice?