A Comparison of Two Data Storage Strategies for Implementing e-Health in China

Data sharing and information exchange among medical institutions is a requirement for convenient and effective data availability for both healthcare professionals and patients. In this article, the characteristics of medical data are studied; two mainstream technologies of data storage for medical information are compared and three strategies of medical documents storage are described with detailed advantages and disadvantages. Semistructured storage technology is easier to deploy and much more promising to promote in a wider range than all-structured method. The combination of central and distributed data storage is more practical for regional data sharing. This analysis suggests that semistructural data storage technology and the combination of central and distributed data storages are efficient and fit well with the current situation in China.