The International Council of Nurses (ICN) and the International Healthcare Terminology Standards Development Organization (IHTSDO) have agreed to create a standard, worldwide terminology for health information systems.

The new standards are designed to improve patient care, data safety and communication. The National Library of Medicine is the US member of the IHTSDO and monitors development and distribution issues as well as standards.

More information on the collaboration can be found in a news release from IHTSDO.