DITA supports real-time updates and synchronization of medical terminology databases, providing healthcare organizations with a powerful mechanism to ensure the accuracy and consistency of medical terminology across their content. Real-time updates and synchronization play a pivotal role in keeping medical terminology current and aligned with evolving standards, guidelines, and research. This capability is vital in the healthcare sector, where timely and precise information is essential for patient care and safety.

In DITA, real-time updates can be achieved by leveraging version control systems and content management solutions. These systems enable organizations to maintain a central repository for medical terminology databases. When updates or changes are made to the terminology, they can be synchronized across all relevant DITA documents in real-time. This ensures that all content, including patient records, medical reports, and clinical guidelines, reflects the most current and accurate medical terminology.

Example:

Here’s an example of how real-time updates and synchronization can be implemented in DITA. Suppose a healthcare organization maintains a central glossary for medical abbreviations and their definitions. When a change is made to an abbreviation, such as “MRI,” it is immediately synchronized across all DITA documents referencing this abbreviation. This ensures that all medical documents consistently use the updated definition of “MRI” in real-time.

<term keyref="mri-glossary"/><term>

In this example, the use of the element with key references ensures that any updates to the “MRI” abbreviation in the central glossary are immediately reflected in all DITA documents.