Interoperable Health IT Ecosystem with FHIR for Imaging

This document is a technical report that outlines the challenges and solutions related to accessing medical images within an interoperable healthcare ecosystem. It describes how electronic medical records have historically limited access to medical images, which are often stored in isolated PACS archives. The report details the needs of various healthcare providers, including radiologists and cardiologists, for timely access to both imaging and non-imaging clinical information. It also discusses the role of national health data sharing networks and cloud-based medical image-sharing networks in addressing these challenges. Furthermore, the report highlights the significance of the FHIR interoperability standard in enhancing access to medical images by integrating them with health information exchanges. The document presents the advancements made by eHealth Technologies in utilizing FHIR for imaging, enabling direct access to images from multiple sources and promoting a more comprehensive health IT ecosystem. The vision for future interoperability in medical imaging is also discussed.