IBM Watson Health will adopt SnoMed Clinical Terms, an international clinical terminology standard used at more than 5,000 organizations across more than 30 countries.
SnoMed International collaborates with healthcare affiliates like payers, medical libraries and biopharmaceutical companies to streamline the exchange of clinical information. Its product, SnoMed CT, recognizes different clinical terms that are used to describe the same condition and links them with a common code, so data analysis systems — like Watson — can identify all references across disparate information sources.
"Standardizing our offerings on SNOMED CT supports our efforts to provide customers and collaborators with clear information to help clinicians as they consider medical decisions and support the efficient delivery of quality care," said Lisa Rometty, vice president of global markets for IBM Watson Health.