We all know that communication is key in any industry, but it is especially important in the healthcare industry. After all, we are talking about people's lives and health here. So, it is no surprise that the healthcare industry has been searching for a way to reduce the friction of data exchange between different healthcare providers. And that is where Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) comes in. So, what is FHIR ?  Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources, in fact, is very important to the healthcare industry because it reduces the friction of exchange. That is, it makes communication between different healthcare providers much easier. But, aside from the ease of data exchange or communication, what other important factors make FHIR a must-have component for healthcare organisations? And What is FHIR ? And it is for this reason that medzinc have created this blog. This blog will go over what is FHIR and why it is important in the healthcare industry. 

What is FHIR?

FHIR is a data standard for exchanging healthcare information. It was developed by HL7. FHIR defines the structure of where data should live and how it should look. This allows different software systems to communicate with each other.  For example, if a provider uses one electronic health record (EHR) system and a patient uses a different one, they can still share information with each other through FHIR.  FHIR is based on a set of resources, or "building blocks." These resources can represent different types of data, such as a 

• patient's demographics, 
• a medication order, or 
• a laboratory test result. 

It also defines how this data can be exchanged using different protocols.

Why is FHIR Important?

FHIR is the next generation of healthcare interoperability. It is a set of standards that define how electronic health information should be structured, exchanged, and managed. FHIR has the potential to transform the way healthcare is delivered by enabling the exchange of information between different systems and different organisations. The importance of FHIR include:

• Better Care Coordination 

One of the most fascinating benefits or importance of FHIR is it leverages care coordination. With its ability to enable fast- easy access and exchange of medical records by multiple users including doctors, payers and patients. Makes it much easier for care providers to offer better care to the patient. 

• Fast and easy Implementation

Time is very crucial when it comes to providing effective care to patients in healthcare. As a result, FHIR serves as the best set of HL7 standards, making the exchange of health records seamless and efficient. 

• A cost-effective Solution

It is quite easy to adapt and use FHIR as compared to other complex sets of standards. With the ability to transmit data easily FHIR makes it easier to analyse the result effectively. Thus automatically reducing the overall cost of healthcare.