Australia and New Zealand, 25/06/21 | Story | Medical Systems Interoperability: The future of connected technologies.
Sending & receiving clinical data easily is essential in the fight against COVID-19. Interoperability has been internationally recognised as an area of increasing importance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although interoperability and vendor neutrality has long been touted as a utopian state within healthcare, will connected technologies reduce the barriers?
By harnessing the power of the Internet of Things (IOT), connected devices will be able to more easily share data & be interoperable.
In order to address the increasing data sharing need, New Zealand have produced an interoperability roadmap1, to accelerate the advancement of healthcare connectivity, which has four main themes:
- Connecting and identifying: Secure connectivity; Digital identities; Common directories.
- Using the same languages: Standardised code systems and data sets; Conformance assessment and certification; Supporting tools.
- Unblocking access to data: Standardised interfaces; Safeguarded data sharing; Integrated consumer generated data.
- Enabling joined-up services: Process and service integration; Adaptive, data-driven system.
In Australia, the Australian Digital Health agency has long promoted the development of digital health specifications and standards to maximise interoperability of medical devices and digital health to remove barriers to data access2.
The Australian government’s national digital health strategy3 has seven strategic priority outcomes:
- Health information that is available whenever and wherever it is needed.
- Health information that can be exchanged securely.
- High-quality data with a commonly understood meaning that can be used with confidence.
- Better availability and access to prescriptions and medicines information.
- Digitally-enabled models of care that drive improved accessibility, quality, safety and efficiency.
- A workforce confidently using digital health technologies to deliver health and care.
- A thriving digital health industry delivering world-class innovation.
At Olympus, our Interoperability Philosophy includes the use of:
- Industry standard operating systems.
- Standards based messaging protocols.
- Future proofing through innovation adoption.
Through Innovation, Simplicity and Connections, Olympus Digital Healthcare is striving to ensure the interoperability of our solutions and platforms to meet the changing needs of the Australian and New Zealand medical & patient communities.
