The knowledge medium - a conceptual framework for the design and implementation of a platform supporting the community of AIDS researchers and practitioners

INTRODUCTION The health care industry is essentially knowledge-based. The quality and efficiency of work performed depends on the ability to both manage internally created knowledge, e. g., about healing practices and available expertise as well as to enrich and integrate it with relevant external knowledge created world-wide by pharmacy research teams, international health organizations, etc. Efficient management of knowledge in health care requires, therefore, concepts and solutions for cooperation and sharing of knowledge within and between communities (Greiner & Rose, 1997). Communities must be supported by special “platforms” which consider both the common language and the community-specific communication and cooperation requirements. In t is chapter, we will introduce the concept of the knowledge medium defined by Schmid and apply it as a conceptual framework to the design