FabCarinci.net

A quick look at RISS applications
and range of reports

Presentation at the
Italian National Institute of Statistics, ISTAT, Rome, 2 May 2000

RISS-H
Diabetes Health
Services Research (Italian/English)

RISS-Q
Outcomes Research Diabetes Italian Network (Italian/English)

SUGItalia'98- Torino

Reporting-by-Intranet Statistical System (RISS)

a software for integrated statistical analysis and web reporting, was conceived by A/Prof Fabrizio Carinci in response to the increased demand for data systems originated by the introduction of case-mix funding in Italy in the early 90s.
For this reason, the development and success of the system was deeply linked to its main deliverables: a series of rapid statistical reports for local/regional health authorities and multicentric epidemiologic studies.

For about five years, the making of RISS was directly funded by public and private institutions: Regione Abruzzo (1996), ASL Lanciano (1997), Regione Basilicata (1997-1998), SAS (1997), University of Bari (Regional Health Observatory Regione Puglia) and Regione Veneto (1999-2000). All source code was originally written by F.Carinci during 1996 for an early platform: 'DRG Analyst'.
Such an early product supported innovative approaches to health systems analysis using hospital datasets, contributing to the publication of a book that was quite innovative in the way it presented casemix-based presentations of regional systems. In the same year, the prototype was presented at meetings and conferences throughout the country.
Successful application for grants allowed for DRG Analyst to be redesigned by A/Prof Carinci and to be developed and variously applied as RISS by F.Carinci, D.Corrado, A.D'Ettorre, A.Menna, F.Pellegrini at the Unit of Statistics and Information Systems, Consorzio Mario Negri Sud.
The development of RISS was completed in year 2000. In the same year, A/Prof Carinci took on the position of Director of the Centre for Health Systems Research, Monash University.
A substantial part of his activity is dedicated to carry on his previous experience with RISS.
In particular, he is refining and internationalising the original concepts, designing and developing new systems that will offer more flexibility and improved usability compared to the earlier prototypes. All software will be open source and will be available under the GPL.

The Unit of Statistics and Information Systems was discontinued in year 2000.
For those still interested in RISS, a personal note on software management follows.
President of Mario Negri Sud, Prof. S.Garattini, recently replied to the author, stating that he considers RISS in the public domain 'as any other product of research at Mario Negri'. However, source code has never been released. The author has proposed to license RISS as open source for the sole purpose of knowledge dissemination and as a possible platform of joint development. Unfortunately, Mario Negri has expressed no interest in any initiatives of this kind.