Release 1.0 of openEHR (Release Notes) was published on 10/Feb/2006. openEHR is a set of public specifications, tested in implementation, for a distributed EHR/EHR computing platform and is designed for use at all levels of e-Health. It integrates with existing data sources, terminologies and is multi-lingual.

OpenEHR is an object-oriented set of specifications designed for implementation in real systems. Semantics include distributed versioning, the full cycle of clinical information recording, various levels of anonymity for the patient, a sophisticated model of time-based data, comprehensive data types and integration with workflow engines.

It provides a new approach for health computing, in which healthcare professionals can have direct input into how their information systems run. Clinical content is configured by archetypes and templates, potentially significantly reducing the maintenance cost of openEHR systems.

Integration with legacy data sources, HL7 messages, Edifact messages etc is enabled by an integration information model.

The openEHR specifications are effectively a superset of the CEN EN13606 standard for EHR Extracts and the HL7 CDA document standard, and provide an implementation path for these standards. openEHR also enables the ASTM CCR specification to be represented as a set of archetypes, making it far more flexible than the default implementation as an XML schema.

Development in openEHR is managed in an open source mode, with a review board, defined change management plan, and public subversion servers. The community includes over 700 members from 60 countries.