FHIR

The exchange of healthcare information and the required standardisation are always evolving. Technological developments also have an impact, mainly in the new versions of technical standards for the exchange. That is why healthcare organisations use numerous information standards for digital information exchange.

FHIR is becoming the standard for information exchange, supported by the governments of most countries across Europe.

FHIR stands for Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources and is the latest of the global HL7 exchange standards. As the successor to HL7 version 3, FHIR combines the best features of HL7 version 2, HL7 version 3, and CDA standards. FHIR uses proven technologies such as REST, XML and JSON, and it applies reusable and expandable building blocks.

FHIR is suitable for all forms of structured information exchange in healthcare and has a strong focus on implementation. Because of the accessible use of existing web technology, it’s also easier to link to mobile apps and (self-measuring) devices.

In the Netherlands, the Medmij standard has chosen FHIR as the method to exchange information between caregivers and patients (personal healthcare environment). Furthermore, FHIR is used in environments such as maternity care (BabyConnect) and eOverdracht (eTransfer).