Information quality is always important. In the life sciences sector, however, information quality, or its absence, can be a matter of life and death. Even if poor quality information can be worked around, it is draining precious time and resources away from other activities that might improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the care being given.

With there being an accelerating movement towards digital healthcare information the targets for both minimal and optimal levels of information quality are in fact being raised. The issue to be weighed is the fact that achieving even minimal levels of information quality can be expensive and can require a deliberate program of investment in content technologies. Fortunately, the movement towards digital healthcare information and services is happening at a time when there is a substantial body of knowledge and experience that has already been built up, typically within the contexts of other industries where information quality is critically important.

Among the most important of the lessons learned from past investments is the importance of leveraging intelligent automation to assist in the creation, management and delivery of high quality information resources and services. One of the areas of particular interest for the life sciences sector will be the role automation can play in validating content and facilitating the progressive elimination of errors and their sources. As has been illustrated, especially within the Aerospace and Defense sector, extraordinarily high levels of information quality can be achieved and sustained in ways that save time and money even when compared to activities that had been performed in order to meet far less exacting quality measures.

This presentation will introduce some of the background about the science of content validation and verification that is available to companies in the life sciences industry in its quest to achieve ever higher levels of quality.