DirectTrust has made the draft of its new Trusted Instant Messaging+ standard available for testing. It bills TIM+ as the industry-first standard to enable real-time secure healthcare IMs by incorporating trust network concepts.

WHY IT MATTERS
DirectTrust lists several benefits to the TIM+ standard, such as its ability to keep participants within their native workflows and technology vendor choices, thus boosting efficiency.

Additionally, TIM+ users can communicate both within a given enterprise messaging tool and across multiple different platforms using a common standard, it said, with a common security and trust framework.

The messaging standard's features include the ability to detect the availability or presence of trusted endpoints, with near real-time changes in availability status and endpoint authorization control of viewing status, according to DirectTrust.

It also supports text-based communication – one-on-one messaging, group chats and feedback notification of message status – as well as file transfers. The group also said it could enable audio and video communication in further releases.

THE LARGER TREND
Those who might be interested in testing the draft TIM+ standard can learn more here.

DirectTrust says it will also host a Connectathon for TIM+ on November 12 – which offers the opportunity to share feedback on the draft Applicability Statement, test reference implementations, suggest use cases and workflows, and provide input regarding policy.

ON THE RECORD
"Connectathons – which date back to the early days of the Direct Project – have served as a gathering place for our colleagues to both exercise the technical standard and collaborate at the network level," said Julie Maas, EMR Direct CEO and chair of the Consensus Body for the TIM+ standard. "We are looking forward to extending this tradition for the draft of the TIM+ standard at the Connectathon in November, and hope to welcome many new communications enthusiasts looking to implement this emerging exchange modality."

"We're thrilled to have a draft of the TIM+ standard ready for testing," said Scott Stuewe, DirectTrust President and CEO in a statement. "We're eager to learn the industry's response as various entities explore this timely and necessary new standard, and look forward to further testing and developments in the areas of workflow and policy at our Connectathon in November."

Twitter: @MikeMiliardHITN
Email the writer: mike.miliard@himssmedia.com
Healthcare IT News is a publication of HIMSS Media