FAQs
An SOA separates partner capabilities into distinct units, or services, which are accessible over a network so users can combine and reuse them in producing applications, receiving real-time information, reporting, performing investigations, etc.
A service, in the context of information exchange, is defined as a distinct function [or unit] that allows the consumer of information to locate and access the information being provided by an information provider. Services communicate with each other by passing data from one service to another, or by coordinating an activity between two or more services.
A Service Specification is a formal document describing the capabilities made available through the service: the service model that defines the semantics of the service by representing its behavioral model, information model, and interactions; the policies that constrain the use of the service; and the service interface that provides a means of interaction with the service.
A service specification is analogous to the software documentation of an Application Programming Interface (API). It provides stakeholders with an understanding of the structure and functionality of the service and the applicability to its implementation interface rules (policies). It gives service consumers the information necessary for consuming a particular service, and service providers the information necessary for implementing the service in a consistent and interoperable manner.
The Performance Reference Model (PRM) is a standardized framework to characterize the performance of information technology (IT) initiatives and their contribution to program performance. PRM can help produce enhanced IT performance information to improve strategic and daily decision-making; improve the alignment and contribution of IT to outputs and outcomes, thereby creating a clear "line of sight" to results; and identify performance improvement opportunities across traditional agency boundaries.
The Business Reference Model (BRM) is a function-driven framework for describing the business operations of the federal government independent of the agencies that perform them. BRM provides an organized, hierarchical construct for describing the federal government's day-to-day business operations.
On February 6, 2002, the development of a Federal Enterprise Architecture (FEA) commenced. Led by OMB, the purpose of this effort is to identify opportunities to simplify processes and unify work across the agencies and within the lines of business of the Federal Government. The outcome of this effort will be a more citizen-centered, customer focused government that maximizes technology investments to better achieve mission outcomes.
The FEA is a business-based framework for cross-agency, government-wide improvement. It provides OMB and the Federal agencies with a new way of describing, analyzing, and improving the federal government and its ability to serve the citizen.
A Business Focused Approach …
Drawing from lessons learned through unsuccessful architecture efforts in the past, the FEA is truly business-driven. As such, its foundation is a Business Reference Model
(BRM), which describes the government’s Lines of Business and its services to the citizen independent of the agencies and offices involved. This business-based foundation provides a common reference point and foundation for improvement in a variety of key areas, such as performance measurement, budget allocation, information technology (IT) redundancy elimination, cross-agency collaboration, and e-Government.
The Data and Information Reference Model (DRM) helps to describe the types of interactions and information exchanges that occur between the federal government and its various constituencies. It will categorize the government's information along general content areas specific to BRM sub functions and decompose those content areas into greater levels of detail, ultimately to data components that are common to many business processes or activities. DRM will establish a commonly understood classification for federal data and enable information sharing between agencies. A common data classification model will streamline the processes associated with information exchange, both within the federal government and between the government and its external stakeholders.
The Technical Reference Model (TRM) is a component driven, technical framework used to identify the standards, specifications, and technologies that support and enable the delivery of service components and capabilities. TRM provides a foundation to support the construction, delivery, and exchange of business and application or service components that may be used and leveraged in a Component-based or Service-oriented Architecture.
The Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) is a standard digital format for expressing the essential content of effective warning messages, regardless of the technology by which they'll be delivered. A single CAP message can be used to trigger sirens, the Emergency Alert System, Weather Radios, telephone notification systems and systems for people with special needs such as the deaf and hearing-impaired.
Click Here to read more about the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP).
All components of a Service Specification are compiled in a GRA Service Specification Package (GRA-SSP). The SSP is a portable, self-contained, and self-documented collection of service specification artifacts in .zip format. The SSP is human- and machine-readable and can be used independently or as part of a service registry and/or repository.
A federation member organization that vets individuals, collects attributes about these individuals, and maintains these attributes in an accurate and timely manner. The IDPO operates an Identity Provider (IDP), which is a software service that performs user authentication each time an individual presents himself or herself to the federation and assigns the current attributes about the individual for a given information technology session. These attributes are presented to Service Providers in the federation or on a federation-to-federation basis.
A federation member organization that provides one or more electronic information service(s) to the federation. Service Provider Organizations provide services to the federation via Service Provider, which are trusted software services. These SPs evaluate the set of Identity Provider attributes presented to them in a form that conforms to the GFIPM Web Browser User-to-System Profile [GFIPM U2S PROFILE], to determine what level of access to provide to each end user.
Information that can be used to uniquely identify, contact, or locate a single person or can be used with other sources to uniquely identify a single individual.
A federation member organization that acts on behalf of one or more Identity Provider Organizations (IDPOs), acting as a trust bridge between those IDPOs and the Federation. A TIBO operates a Trusted Identity Broker (TIB), which is a software entity that provides the necessary cryptographic bridge and attribute translation capabilities to allow users from Identity Provider Organizations not in the Federation to access services in the Federation.
The Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) Information Exchange (PMIX) establishes a national interoperability architecture, specifications, and a reusable infrastructure for the secure, reliable, and sustainable interstate exchange of state prescription data. PMIX leverages service-oriented architecture (SOA) principles through the Global Reference Architecture (GRA) to minimize custom development and maximize future agility.
PDMPs maintain statewide electronic databases of prescriptions dispensed for controlled substances (i.e., prescription drugs of abuse that are subject to stricter government regulation). Information collected by PDMPs may be used to support access to and legitimate medical use of controlled substances; identify or prevent drug abuse and diversion, facilitate the identification of prescription drug-addicted individuals and enable intervention and treatment, outline drug use and abuse trends to inform public health initiatives, or educate individuals about prescription drug use, abuse, and diversion as well as about PDMPs.
The PMIX Pilot Program is just a start. Infrastructure for the PMIX Pilot was tested in a successful pilot exchange of live data between the Kentucky All Schedules Prescription Electronic Reporting system and the Ohio Automated Rx Reporting System or RxCheck Hub. Under the PMIX approach, all protected health information was encrypted at the message level so that private data was not visible to any intermediary servers outside state boundaries. The supporting technologies used for the Pilot follow:
Data interoperability was enabled through National Information Exchange Model (NIEM) Information Exchange Package Documentation (IEPD).
Messaging interoperability was through a GRA PMIX Service Specification Package, including reliable secure web services capabilities.
A software development kit containing a State Routing Service intermediary and a reference implementation was used to reduce cost and accelerate adoption of the required state-side software.
The RxCheck Hub is the baseline implementation of the PMIX architecture. The hub was developed, with BJA support, to create an operational data sharing hub to implement the PMIX specifications and to deliver a functional, interstate, data-sharing hub. The RxCheck hub was designed with the involvement of the state PDMP practitioner community, private industry, and the Federal government, and began as the PMIX hub during a prototype development phase with data exchanges between Ohio and Kentucky. The hub was subsequently renamed the RxCheck hub to avoid confusion between the architecture and the hub.
Resource:
Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Document
RxCheck Connection Guide (June 2014)
PMIX IEPD
In 2006 the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices organized a Policy Academy which included five states. A grant of $50,000 was used to fund research to encourage justice information sharing using the Global Justice XML Data Model (GJXDM). States included in the Policy Academy were Connecticut, Iowa, Minnesota, New York, and North Carolina. Pilot projects focused on a variety of information exchanges. This report, drafted by the state of Connecticut, documents the CJIS-Meta Data Repository Project (CJIS-MDR), which is the data on the knowledge that is within an organization.
http://www.nga.org/cms/home.html
Participating Organization: Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division
Contact Organization: Office of Policy and Management
Contact Person: Terry Schnure
[email protected]
Contact Phone: 806-418-6390
In 2006 the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices organized a Policy Academy which included five states. A grant of $50,000 to each state was used to fund research to encourage justice information sharing using the Global Justice XML Data Model (GJXDM). States included in the Policy Academy were Connecticut, Iowa, Minnesota, New York, and North Carolina. Pilot projects focused on a variety of information exchanges. This report, drafted by the state of Iowa, outlines some goals, outcomes, and lessons learned from the exchange of information between the County Attorneys and the Department of Corrections in Iowa.
http://www.nga.org/Files/pdf/07GJXDMIA.PDF
Participating Organization: Division of Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning
Contact Organization: Iowa Department of Human Rights
Contact Person: David Meyers
[email protected]
Contact Phone: 515-281-6929