Canadian Health Information Management Association Practice Exam

Which markup language facilitates the interchange of data as structured text across different systems?

1. CPOE

2. EDMS

3. ES

4. XML

The correct answer is: XML

The correct answer is XML, which stands for eXtensible Markup Language. XML is designed specifically to facilitate the interchange of structured information and data between different systems in a way that is both human-readable and machine-readable. It provides a versatile framework for encoding documents in a format that is both simple and universal, allowing for seamless data sharing across various platforms, applications, and services. XML allows for the definition of custom tags that describe the data within, making it adaptable to many different contexts or domains. This characteristic is particularly important in health information management, where data may come from diverse sources and must be integrated or exchanged between various health information systems while maintaining the context and structure. Other options present different concepts that do not focus on data interchange as a primary function. For instance, CPOE refers to Computerized Physician Order Entry, which is a system for electronic entry of medical practitioner instructions for patient care. EDMS stands for Electronic Document Management System, focusing on managing documents electronically rather than data interchange. ES might refer to multiple concepts, such as Electronic Services or other specific systems, but none provide the same level of structured data interchange as XML does. Thus, XML stands out as the correct choice for facilitating the exchange of structured text data across different systems