VA Kernel
Encyclopedia
The VA Kernel is a set of programs, developed by the Department of Veterans Affairs of the United States Government, which provide an operating system and MUMPS
implementation independent abstraction to the VistA
Hospital Information System. These programs (called 'routines' in MUMPS) are the only programs which are expected to not be written in ANSI Standard MUMPS.
The MUMPS language used in the kernel is amazingly simple, consisting of a single language (MUMPS), a single data type (string), a single data storage mechanism (global arrays stored on disk), 19 commands and 22 functions. MUMPS is a symbolic language with linguistic roots closer to LISP
than Fortran
or Cobol
. Because of this simple software layer, the VistA
software architecture has been able to adapt to changing hardware environments over the decades with only the minimum amount of software changes at higher levels of abstraction.
The CHCS system and the RPMS system have a Kernel as well, which provides a similar degree of support to those systems as the VA Kernel does to VistA
.
The VA Kernel provides abstractions for:
MUMPS
MUMPS , or alternatively M, is a programming language created in the late 1960s, originally for use in the healthcare industry. It was designed for the production of multi-user database-driven applications...
implementation independent abstraction to the VistA
VistA
The Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture is an enterprise-wide information system built around an Electronic Health Record , used throughout the United States Department of Veterans Affairs medical system, known as the Veterans Health Administration .It's a collection...
Hospital Information System. These programs (called 'routines' in MUMPS) are the only programs which are expected to not be written in ANSI Standard MUMPS.
The MUMPS language used in the kernel is amazingly simple, consisting of a single language (MUMPS), a single data type (string), a single data storage mechanism (global arrays stored on disk), 19 commands and 22 functions. MUMPS is a symbolic language with linguistic roots closer to LISP
Lisp
A lisp is a speech impediment, historically also known as sigmatism. Stereotypically, people with a lisp are unable to pronounce sibilants , and replace them with interdentals , though there are actually several kinds of lisp...
than Fortran
Fortran
Fortran is a general-purpose, procedural, imperative programming language that is especially suited to numeric computation and scientific computing...
or Cobol
COBOL
COBOL is one of the oldest programming languages. Its name is an acronym for COmmon Business-Oriented Language, defining its primary domain in business, finance, and administrative systems for companies and governments....
. Because of this simple software layer, the VistA
VistA
The Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture is an enterprise-wide information system built around an Electronic Health Record , used throughout the United States Department of Veterans Affairs medical system, known as the Veterans Health Administration .It's a collection...
software architecture has been able to adapt to changing hardware environments over the decades with only the minimum amount of software changes at higher levels of abstraction.
The CHCS system and the RPMS system have a Kernel as well, which provides a similar degree of support to those systems as the VA Kernel does to VistA
VistA
The Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture is an enterprise-wide information system built around an Electronic Health Record , used throughout the United States Department of Veterans Affairs medical system, known as the Veterans Health Administration .It's a collection...
.
The VA Kernel provides abstractions for:
- Menu Management (MenuMan)
- Electronic mail, group conferencing, transaction processing (MailMan)
- Login and Access Security
- Task scheduling and Batch processing
- Input/Output devices
- Protocol and Event processing
- Date processing and manipulation
- Mathematical and common library functions