The Integrative Medicine and Solution Standards Process

Proposed Standard | The entry-level maturity for the standards track is "Proposed Standard". A specific action by the M3SG is required to move a specification onto the standards track at the "Proposed Standard" level. Immature specifications, desirable to implement in order to gain experience, validate, test, and clarify - (not recommended for disruption sensitive environments)

Draft Standard | Requirement of at least two independent implementations for which successful operational experience has been gained. Elevation to Draft Standard is a major advance in status, indicating strong belief that the specification is mature and will be useful. In cases in which one or more options or features have not been demonstrated in at least two successful implementations, the specification may advance to Draft Standard level only if those options or features are removed or designated as inconclusive or cautionary. normally considered to be a final specification, changes are likely to be made only to solve specific problems encountered. In most circumstances, it is reasonable to deploy implementations of Draft Standards into a disruption sensitive environment.

Standard | A specification for which significant implementation and successful operational experience has been obtained. "A Standard" (a.k.a. An Integrative Medicine and Solution Standard) is characterized by degree of technical maturity. A specification that reaches the status of Standard is assigned a number in the IMS-D series while retaining its RFC number.

Non-Standards Track Maturity Levels

A specification may not be intended to be an Integrative Medicine and Solution Standard, or it may be intended for eventual standardization but not yet ready to enter the standards track. A specification may have been superseded by a more recent Integrative Medicine and Solution Standard, or have otherwise fallen into disuse or disfavor.

To ensure that the non-standards track Experimental and Informational designations are not misused to circumvent Integrative Medicine and Solution Standards Process, the M3SG and the RFC Editor have agreed that the RFC Editor will refer to the M3SG any document submitted for Experimental or Informational publication which, in the opinion of the RFC Editor, may be related to work being done, or expected to be done, within the RDTF community. The M3SG shall review such a referred document within a reasonable period of time, and recommend either that it be published as originally submitted or referred to the RDTF as a contribution to Integrative Medicine and Solution Standards Process.

Experimental | typically denotes a specification that is part of some research or development effort. Such a specification is published for the general information of the NFIM and 3GML community and as an archival record of the work, subject only to editorial considerations and to verification that there has been adequate coordination with the standards process. An Experimental specification may be the output of an organized 3GML research effort (e.g., a Research Group of the RDTF), an area or short-lived Working Group (SWG), or it may be an individual contribution.

Informational | published for the general information of the Integrative Medicine and Solutions community, and does not represent an Integrative Medicine and Solutions community consensus or recommendation. The Informational designation is intended to provide for the timely publication of a very broad range of responsible informational documents from many sources, subject only to editorial considerations and to verification that there has been adequate coordination with the standards process.

Historic | A specification that has been superseded by a more recent specification or is for any other reason considered to be obsolete is assigned to the "Historic" level.

External Specifications

To avoid conflict between competing versions of a specification, the Integrative Medicine and Solutions community will not standardize a specification that is simply an "3GML version" of an existing external specification unless an explicit cooperative arrangement to do so has been made.

Open Standards | Various national and international standards bodies develop a variety of protocol and practice specifications that are similar to Technical Specifications defined here. National and international groups also publish "implementors' agreements" that are analogous to Applicability Statements, capturing a body of implementation-specific detail concerned with the practical application of their standards. All of these are considered to be "open external standards" for the purposes of Integrative Medicine and Solution Standards Process.

Other Specifications | Other proprietary specifications that have come to be widely used in the 3GML may be treated by the Integrative Medicine and Solutions community as if they were a "standards". Such a specification is not generally developed in an open fashion, is typically proprietary, and is controlled by the vendor, vendors, or organization that produced it.

Different Types Of 3GML Standard Specifications

Technical Specification (TS) | description of a protocol, service, procedure, convention, or application.

Applicability Statement (AS) | a designation such as “required,” “recommended,” or “elective,” that specifies how, and under what circumstances, one or more TSs may be applied to support a particular 3GML capability.

Technical Specifications Not In Standards Track or Retired From The Standards Track

Limited Use | considered to be appropriate for use only in limited or unique circumstances.

Not Recommended | considered to be inappropriate for general use.