IHTSDO-980 Review of description inactivation values

IHTSDO-980 Review of description inactivation values

Title

Review of the RF2 description inactivation values

Document information

Version Information

 

Document Author(s):

Editorial Panel

Change Owner:

Penni Hernandez

Content Editor:

Penni Hernandez

Version:

1.1

Date Created:

27 September 2016

Document status

Approved

Related Tracker Artifact(s):

https://snomed.atlassian.net/browse/IHTSDO-980

Document review(s)

@Jim Case 20170109

Approval process           

 

Complete

Approved by

Approval Date

?

Head of Terminology

20170109

?

<Other>

 

Updates:

1 Feb 2017: The definition for |Not semantically equivalent component| has been updated (see below) and clarification that ambiguous or vague descriptions that are inactivated would use the value | Nonconformance to editorial policy component | was added. Note the guidance on what to use where more than one value applies is still applicable. Change made as an outcome of the discussion at the Internal editorial Panel 31 Jan 2017. 

Analysis and solution

1.    Statement of problem as requested or initially identified

Several issues with the current description inactivation values present in RF2 have been raised.

  • Some of the reasons for inactivation are not being met by the current range of values available.

  • The meaning of some of the current values lack clarity. Further explanations and examples would support consistency of use.

  • Some values are not being used in work on the international release at this point in time. 

2.    Relevance to International edition

The international release is used in many countries and forms the basis of the SNOMED CT extensions. The inactivation values provide users of SNOMED CT with the reason for inactivation. It is important that all relevant reasons for inactivation are available for use and that the meaning of each value is clear.  

3.    Related changes impacted by this content development request

  • Several of the description inactivation values are also used as concept inactivation values. Changes to these values need to take into account the impact on range of permitted values for concept inactivation.  

  • There would be tooling changes for the IHTSDO SCA tool (provided below). 

There is one other IHTSDO content tracker which deals with inactivation statuses: https://snomed.atlassian.net/browse/IHTSDO-95 . The work done on this tracker IHTSDO-980 needs to be linked with that content tracker issue and that issue updated accordingly. 

4.    Agreed scope statement

The current concepts in scope are the subtypes of | Description inactivation value (foundation metadata concept) |.

Within the SCA tool functionality provides the option to note "Reason not stated" (not an RF2 construct).  When this value is selected no data row is added to the | Description inactivation indicator reference set |. This option while not a SNOMED CT concept is within scope of this work. 

5.    Identify additional changes     

As noted in Section 3, consideration also needs to be given to the impact on concept inactivation. This will be done outside the scope of this work.

6.    Solution proposed

Description inactivation value issues and proposed actions

The solution proposed would apply prospectively. There will be no change to existing inactive descriptions unless during the editing process an error in the original value selected was detected. 

Comments on usage of these values needs to take into account that the functionality to allow an author of the International Edition to apply description inactivation values was introduced as part of the SCA tooling environment. 

Description Inactivation Value (current and proposed)

Currently applicable to:

Current Issue/State

Proposed Action

Current Definition:

 

Proposed Definition

Description Examples

Description Inactivation Value (current and proposed)

Currently applicable to:

Current Issue/State

Proposed Action

Current Definition:

 

Proposed Definition

Description Examples

 

 

 

Descriptions and Concepts

Section 1.6 Transfer of Responsibility between Organizations located in the Extension Specification and Guide states in relation of transfer of components from an extension to the International Release (or a parent extension) that " As a result of revised to guidance on SNOMED CT Identifier Updates, since 2011, some transfers can be made without changing the Identifier of the component provided that the RF2 format moduleId field is used to denote that the component is now being issued as part of a different module". In relation to demotion of content however, the same guidance notes that for transfer of one or more components between other Extensions or from the International Release to any Extension a component must be assigned a new SCTID.

Whilst noting promotion of components is possible the current practice is not to move descriptions between different modules.

It also needs to be noted that the current definition provided for this value for both concepts and descriptions has been identified as incorrect as the description is not made inactive if it is moved to a parent module.

Where a description is inactivated as the concept has been moved to the International Edition or an extension and a new description with the same string created the current description should be inactivated as a | Duplicate component |.

No change to the concept status. It will remain active.

Given that descriptions are not being promoted together with the fact that the current functionality within the SCA Tool does not allow this action to be undertaken this value should be removed from the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

D: The Description has been made inactive because it has been moved to another namespace.

 C: The Concept has been made inactive because it has been moved to another namespace.

Given this value is not required for the International Edition, no new definition is proposed as part of this work. In noting that, the Head and Education and Product Support has been advised of the issue with the current definition.

N/A

Descriptions

The inactivation of a concept does not necessarily result in inactivation of the descriptions associated the concept in RF2. Each inactivation of a concept will generate multiple entries for associated descriptions. 313,597 entries have been included in the 900000000000490003|Description inactivation indicator attribute value reference set (foundation metadata concept)| for inactive concepts.

One might argue that these entries should not be this refset because these descriptions are still active. However, it is out of the scope for this project.



No change to the concept status. This value is in use as it is applied in the backend automatically when a concept is inactivated.

The value is to be removed from the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

D:The Description is still active but the Concept it refers to is now inactive.

C: N/A

N/A

N/A

Descriptions and Concepts

Duplication of synonyms is allowed. Where a synonym with the same string has been applied to two concepts and one is found to be inappropriate e.g. not semantically equivalent, then that description inactivation value should be applied.

The duplication of an FSN string is not permitted. (Noting here there may be more than one FSN for a concept, though only one may be marked as preferred for a language reference set). The International Edition uses US English for the FSN and the SCA Tool includes validation rules which prevent two FSN's using the same string.

The new SCA tool currently includes this inactivation indicator value and for the July 2016 release ten descriptions were inactivated with this value.

This value is also used for concept inactivation and will continue to be.

Input from Linda Bird: "It may be appropriate to use this inactivation value, when the same concept has 2 descriptions, which both have exactly the same term (and language and caseSignificanceId) .... in this situation (which could, for example, occur when a concept is promoted and assigned new descriptions which were also in the extension), this value may be applicable". This feedback has identified the need to retain this value in the range of options provided in the SCA Tool for description inactivation values for use by those managing extensions.

This concept needs to remain active to support both backwards compatibility and inactivation of concepts.

This value is to remain on the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool. It is not required for management of the International Edition. If the functionality is available to change the range of values available so that a narrower range of options can be offered for working on the International Edition then this should be considered.

D: The Description has been made inactive because it duplicates another Description.

C: The Concept has been made inactive because it has the same meaning as another Concept.

N/A

N/A

Descriptions and Concepts

This value was applied for 210 descriptions which were inactivated as part of the work for the 2016 July International Release.

No change to the concept status. It will remain active.

Clarification of the meaning of this concept through revision of the text definition. This clarification would be relevant for both concept and description inactivation.

Guidance development required noting clarification of the meaning of this value and provision of examples to support understanding.

This value is to remain on the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

D: The Description has been made inactive because it contains an error.

 C: The Concept has been made inactive because it contains an error.

D: Any description that contains a technical error.

C: Any concept that contains a technical error.

Description examples:

Case significance changes e.g. Alpha where the lower case a should have been used.

Spelling errors e.g. A description where Asthma is misspelt "Assthma"

Concept examples:

 

Descriptions

The usage of the value |Inappropriate component| has declined over the time. The reason for this is currently not understood but potential reasons include lack of clarity in meaning and tooling changes.

Feedback from some members of the internal content team has identified that the meaning of this concept is vague.

No change to the concept status to support backward compatibility.

Guidance development required noting this value should no longer be used for description inactivation.

The value is to be removed from the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

D: The Description has been made inactive because the associated term does not describe the associated Concept.

C: N/A

 

 

Descriptions and Concepts

The value has been applied as part of the inactivation of classification concepts such as NOS, NEC.

Guidance material exists for descriptions noting this value should no longer be applied. The value may appear in retrospective data.

 

No change to the concept status to support backward compatibility.

The value is to be removed from the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

D:The Description refers to a Concept that has limited status.

Note: This value should not be used in future releases as Limited status Concepts are now inactive. However, this value may appear on retrospective data in a full release.

C: The Concept is of limited value as it contains classification categories such as 'Not Elsewhere Classified' which do not have a stable meaning within SNOMED CT. Until 2010 concepts with this status were regarded as active but since then they have been marked as inactive.

N/A

N/A

Descriptions and Concepts

This value is currently used as an inactivation indicator value for both concepts and descriptions.

No change to the concept status.

Clarification of the meaning of this concept through revision of the text definition. This clarification would be relevant for both concept and description inactivation.

 Guidance development required noting clarification of the meaning of this value and provision of examples to support understanding.

This value is to remain on the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

D: The Description has been made inactive because it is an outdated name or spelling that is no longer used.

C: The Concept has been made inactive because it is an outdated concept that is no longer used.

D: Any description that is no longer current, useful, appropriate or acceptable.

 

C: Any concept that is no longer current, useful, appropriate or acceptable.

Description examples:

Descriptions that are no longer appropriate. The description "Funny looking kid" was inactivated from 112630007|Abnormal facies (finding)|.

 Concept examples: Conditions that over time become known under a different name. The FSN for 67782005|Adult respiratory distress syndrome (disorder)| was inactivated and replaced by |Acute respiratory distress syndrome (disorder)|

Descriptions and Concepts

The value has been applied along with the status change for concepts that are moving to the module, such as, from national extension to International edition.

As noted above descriptions can not be moved from the International Edition to an extension without inactivation of the description and for Extension managers using the SCA tool, the option to promote descriptions is currently not available.

 

No change to the concept status to support backward compatibility.

The value is to be removed from the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

D:The Description is still active but it is in the process of being moved to another namespace and when the move is complete it will be marked as inactive.

 C: The Concept is still active but it is in the process of being moved to another namespace and when the move is complete it will be marked as inactive.

N/A

N/A

"Reason not stated"

(Not a value but available in the Authoring Platform)

Descriptions and Concepts

This is not an RF2 value.

The value is to be removed from the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

 

 

 

 

 

Nil

 

Include in the range of permitted values for descriptions.

Guidance development required in relation to the meaning of this value, its use and provision of examples to support understanding.

 This value is to be added to the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

Further consideration is required to determine whether this value should also be available for concept inactivation.

New inactivation value - no current definition.

D: A description that fails to comply with the current editorial guidance.

NOTE: this includes ambiguous or vague descriptions that are inactivated.

C: A concept that fails to comply with the current editorial guidance. (see comments in planned action column)

 Description examples:

The description 167230004| Urine: turbid (finding) | was inactivated and replaced by “Turbid urine (finding)”

 

 









Nil

 

Include in the range of permitted values for descriptions.

Guidance development required in relation to the meaning of this value, it's use and provision of examples to support understanding.

This value is to be added to the list of options provided for description inactivation values in the SCA Tool.

Not required for concepts.

New description inactivation value- no current definition.

D: A description that does not represent the same meaning as the concept FSN. For example, descriptions that are broader than, narrower than, or different to the FSN.

Description examples:

Examples as noted in the Editorial Guide: 7.1.4 Synonym

More than one inactivation value is applicable

Guidance will be required for scenarios where more than one description inactivation value could apply. For example: The concept 22298006 | Myocardial infarction (disorder) | had the synonym 37440017 | Heart attack, NOS |. The synonym is not semantically equivalent nor does it align with editorial policy. Other scenarios with the same or other combinations may also be encountered over time. 

To support consistency, where more than one inactivation value may be applicable the value selected should be done in the following order of preference:

  1. | Not semantically equivalent component (foundation metadata concept) |

  2. | Outdated component (foundation metadata concept) |

  3. | Erroneous component (foundation metadata concept) |

  4. | Nonconformance to editorial policy component (foundation metadata concept) |

  5. | Duplicate component (foundation metadata concept) | - see qualifying note below. 

To support this guidance it is recommended that these values are displayed in the SCA Tool in this order. 

The value | Duplicate component (foundation metadata concept) | is only required in extensions for descriptions where the concept has been promoted to a parent extension or the International Edition and new descriptions with the same string created as part of that promotion. In this particular scenario | Duplicate component | should be selected in preference to the other description inactivation indicator values. 

Summary

In summary there will be five values in the SCA Tool. The list includes three existing concepts and two new concepts as noted below.  For authoring of the International Edition only the first four values should be used. The fifth value    | Duplicate component | should only be used within an extension. From a tooling perspective, it is preferred that this value should not be available for selection when working on the International Edition. 

Additional changes

In addition to the replacement of value list, the REFERS TO refset has to be maintained and updated in the SCA tool for description inactivation. The REFERS TO reset provides the link between an inactive description and an active concept that is appropriate for this description. The table below shows the decline of number in the REFERS TO refset.  The REFERS TO refset has no entry for 2016 July international release because the SCA tool does not provide a means to update the refset.

Release

Number inactive descriptions in REFERS TO refset

Number of Description inactivation

Release

Number inactive descriptions in REFERS TO refset

Number of Description inactivation

2008-07-31

140

53102

2009-01-31

150

1713

2009-07-31

96

1547

2010-01-31

57

2021

2010-07-31

71

1124

2011-01-31

64

249

2011-07-31

41

493

2012-01-31

13

1092

2012-07-31

39

291

2013-01-31

32

266

2013-07-31

28

943

2014-01-31

33

6283

2014-07-31

44

1132

2015-01-31

14

2437

2015-07-31

8

1914

2016-01-31

3

4274

2016-07-31

 

356

The SCA tool needs to provide a means to update of the REFERS TO refset. The display of description inactivation list should include the option for providing an active concept. This option should be only available for description inaction because it is "not semantically equivalent" as demonstrated in the following screenshot. Where possible an active concept should be provided if the inactivation reason is "not semantically equivalent" before the completion of description inactivation.

Ideally, the popup window can also display the descriptions of this active concept, e.g. editing panel, and allows adding new description at this step. This will help author to decide if the same term should be added as a new synonym for this concept. If term already exists on active concept is only phrased differently, it would not be necessary to add a new synonym because word order difference. 

The other approach is to allow editor to drag and drop a description from one concept to another. In noting this movement of the description to a new concept would require an new description ID. The suggestion above is noted as the preferred option. 

7.    Stakeholder input

 Further input as required may be sought from: 

  • Education and Product support team (Linda Bird has provided this)

  • Content team

  • CMAG

  • Members using the managed service

Input has already been provided by the Design Authority who agreed to the four description inactivation indicator values as noted above.  Given the need identified for the | Duplicate component | it has also been included. 

8.    Impact assessment

The content team could test new range of values and guidance material to ensure consistent understanding and application of values. 

9.    Risk assessment

The changes and limitation in description inactivation values will be limited initially to the IHTSDO SCA Tool. This tool is used for both authoring of the International Edition and two extensions. Ideally this change should only be applied to the International Edition, however this may not be feasible from a tooling perspective. If this is the case the extension managers should be made aware of the changes and plans for testing so their needs can be taken into account.

The change will be brought in at the start of a new authoring cycle for the International Release. While it is anticipated these values will meet the needs of authors, the application of these values can be tested during that authoring period with issues identified and managed as appropriate during that time period.  It is recommended that a review be undertaken prior to the end of the authoring cycle. Feedback should also be sort from the members using the managed service. 

There is a need to also undertake a review of the concept inactivation values. As noted above some of these inactivation indicator values are applicable to both concepts and descriptions and clarification of meaning may impact selection of inactivation indicator values for concepts. One of the new description inactivation indicator values may also potentially be of value for use with concepts. 

10.   Priority       

Status

  • High

Basis 

  • The proposed changes to the description inactivation values will improve the clarity of the meaning of these values and improve the quality of data provided on the reasons a description is inactivated. 

11.   Content editing 

Details of content changes

  • Addition of two new concepts | Nonconformance to editorial policy component (foundation metadata concept) | and | Not semantically equivalent component (foundation metadata concept) | as subtypes of | Description inactivation value (foundation metadata concept) |

  • Addition of text definitions to each of the description inactivation values to support understanding of usage. 

  • Tooling changes to refine the available values as listed and also manage the issue noted in relation to the REFERS TO refset

  • Development and updates to documentation as noted in the solution which should be included as relevant in:

    • Editorial Guide 

    • Terminology Services Guide

    • IHTSDO Authoring Tool User Guide 

    • Release notes

    • Educational material (E Learning courses and presentations)

Manual quality check

  • Changes to be reviewed by a Content team member.

Automated quality check

  • Automated checks would be carried out by the tooling team as part of the tooling changes. 

Publish to release branch

 


 

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