EQUERY

Internet Based Pathology Result Download

E-QUERY PROVIDES SECURE INTERNET MESSAGE FILE TRANSFER.
IT DELIVERS FILES ONTO YOUR COMPUTER USING A STANDARD INTERNET CONNECTION

WHAT IS E-QUERY ?

- E-Query is a message delivery system that uses the Internet to transport the messages.
- All the messages are encrypted with a "user-to-user" specific coding.
- Any user who can connect to the Internet can send and receive messages with E-Query.

TELL ME SOME REAL JOBS E-QUERY CAN MANAGE …

A Doctor can collect results directly from a Pathology Laboratory, via the Internet, straight into a local Medical Clinical Records system (e.g. Medical Director, Medical Spectrum, etc.)

A Doctor can send a "Request for Service" to any Pathology Laboratory.

A Laboratory can exchange encrypted HL7 requests and results with a reference laboratory using "E-Query Server".

IS E-QUERY JUST EMAIL ?

E-Query uses network processes that are similar to Email to manage message delivery, but the control of all the processes is in the hands of the E-Query Manager.

Messages are compressed and encrypted to improve speed and economy.

HOW DOES E-QUERY WORK FOR RESULTS DOWNLOAD ?

The Doctor's E-Query can connect automatically across the Internet to the Pathology Provider's E-query Server. When the Doctor connects, a session is started using dynamic Passwords generated by the E-Query Password Algorithm. Results are automatically sent to the Doctor across this link.

The E-Query client in the Doctor's surgery can automatically connect to the Internet using a schedule that each Practice maintains.

HOW DOES E-QUERY WORK BETWEEN TWO LABORATORIES ?

E-Query allows automatic pathways to be set up between E-Query Servers across the Internet.

Files created at one laboratory appear in a nominated location on a remote Server.

This automatic delivery includes compression and encryption that is "user-to-user" specific.

This process is ideal for HL7 Messaging Systems. The E-Query Server is able to decide where the HL7 message should be delivered.

WILL ANYONE ON THE INTERNET BE ABLE TO SEE MY RESULTS ?

No … the E-query Server never accepts messages unless they are correctly encrypted. It does not respond to requests from anything except encrypted E-Query messages.

COULD ANYONE ELSE WHO HAS E-QUERY SEE MY RESULTS ?

No … when a new user is created, an encryption KEY is generated which is specific to the link between the specific E-Query Server and that user. E-query always expects messages to be encrypted using its own key. If someone else's key is used, E-Query rejects the messages.

In the same way, the E-Query Server always expects messages to be encrypted with the specific user's key and will reject any connection that attempts to send unencrypted or wrongly encrypted files.

COULD A PERSON WITH TECHNICAL INTERNET KNOWLEDGE USE SPECIAL TOOLS TO LOOK AT MY RESULTS ?

It is not possible for persons without expert knowledge of Cryptography and the Internet transport system to read the results sent using the E-Query method. The method provides a similar level of security to the X400/PGP system currently in widespread use.

(With enormous difficulty and expense, it is always possible to intercept internet traffic and with expertise in cryptography sort out the method of encryption and decode packets - the cost of doing this would be considerable and under normal conditions could never be justifiable).

WHAT DO I NEED TO USE THE RESULTS DOWNLOAD ?

All you need is a Windows 95/98/NT/2000 computer with an Internet connection. In most cases, practices already have a computer set up for Web browsing and for
E-Mail.

HOW MUCH WILL IT COST FOR RESULTS DOWNLOAD ?

Generally, a set of Pathology result files will take less than 10 seconds to download -- for Practices that already have Internet services for E-Mail and Web browsing, the cost is negligible.

For other Practices, the cost of a block of Internet time sufficient for this task for a whole year would only be around $25. The cost of a modem is generally less than $100. Often, you can get up to 50 hours free Internet subscription when you buy a modem.

IS IT AS EASY TO USE AS THE X400 METHODS ?

It is far easier and in fact, E-Query can be automated to fetch results without user intervention. It is simply a matter of importing the files when E-Query notifies you that there are results to import.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO INSTALL ?

On a single computer that connects directly to the Internet via a modem, the process takes only a few minutes. In Practices that have a permanent connection to the Internet via a Proxy Server on their own network, installation can take longer (but generally less than an hour).

WHY SHOULD I CHANGE FROM X400 TO E-QUERY FOR RESULTS DOWNLOAD ?

The Telstra X400 system currently uses 9600bps modems to run this service. This is an old standard and quite slow. It is now difficult to buy modems that are capable of dropping down to this low speed without sorting out special initialisation strings.

There is no way for the pathology laboratory to check if results have been delivered with X400: all that is possible is to say that the results were sent. With E-Query the laboratory can tell if, and when, results have been collected. The sending laboratory can also see if clients are having technical difficulties and can let them know. It is also very easy to resend sets of results if they are lost.

E-Query can be automated so that you don't need to do anything except import your results. Some clinical management software can also be configured to automatically import results.