Further development of LOINC in Germany

Since the Patient Data Protection Act came into effect, the BfArM is responsible for the further development of LOINC for the needs in Germany and for the provision of translations for the electronic patient record in accordance with § 355 Para. 7 SGB V (German Social Code). LOINC is used as terminology for the representation of laboratory tests and clinical observations. For the provision of LOINC in Germany, the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) works closely with the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV) or mio42 GmbH, which creates Medical Information Objects (MIO).
The BfArM coordinates the requirements for translations and further development in Germany and is the central point of contact for questions about LOINC as well as the contact partner for the Regenstrief Institute as a "German Adopter".
The BfArM works closely with professional societies and associations in the laboratory field to coordinate the requirements and ensure quality. The quality-assured translations are submitted to the Regenstrief Institute for publication. They can be obtained there (as Linguistic Variant deDE15).

Download the translation for Germany linguistic variants (free registration required)

Uniform designation of observations in the laboratory and clinic

Information systems in health care, such as laboratory information systems or analysers, predominantly use their own/proprietary code systems to communicate data electronically. Therefore, recipients may not be able to correctly assign and interpret received values. The assignment of values becomes difficult when transmitted data come from different sources with different designations. For example, a hospital may receive test results from several laboratories, each with a different name for the laboratory test.
A uniform coding of laboratory values with the internationally used code system LOINC makes it possible to combine examination results through standardised designations for data exchange in the health care system between all service providers as well as across sector and language boundaries. This is particularly relevant for the electronic patient record, where information flows together from many different sources and at different times. A common code system in the data exchange of laboratory results is also particularly important for the electronic communication of data between laboratory, clinic and practice. This approach is important for patient safety as well as correct and sustainable documentation and supports standardised processing of laboratory data.