November 25, 2022
This guide will discuss everything you need to know about API and HL7 in the healthcare industry. Moreover, we will also walk you through how clinical data sharing and healthcare data analytics differ. Besides, we will explore how talkEHR’s financial and healthcare data analytics solution, Precision BI Lite, can help healthcare facilities stay on top of their practices.
What API stands for in healthcare is a question that doctors frequently get. It stands for application programming language. An API is a software that connects two or more applications, allowing data to flow despite differences in each application's original architecture, according to the Journal of AHIMA (American Health Information Management Association).
In several businesses, modern computing is frequently characterized by APIs. They expedite the sharing of relevant data and assist in connecting individuals to the services they want and need.
The fact that many people were utilizing their systems and databases to keep information in the early days of the internet was an issue. In digital form, sharing the information was often a hassle, if not impossible. However, there are better approaches than relying on printouts of the data to utilize such vast amounts of information. So, to simplify information sharing, the computer industry created APIs.
In order to better understand current trends, a doctor's office could want to examine specifics about its patient group. They might also want to let patients access a portal to verify specifics from their electronic health records (EHR) information.
It refers to a collection of standards known as Health Level Seven or HL7, which different healthcare providers use to transfer administrative and clinical data between software programs. These standards concentrate on the application layer.
The non-profit company, sometimes known as "HL7 International," was established in 1987. It is focused on assisting enterprises with their administrative and clinical data and has received accreditation from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Standards Developing Organizations. According to the organization, "The name HL7 comes from the seven Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model layers”. The Application Level is at Level 7.
There are currently international standards for healthcare data interchange thanks to HL7. The goal of HL7 is to create a society where all authorized individuals have access to the correct data at the right time and place. The mission of HL7 is to develop and promote the standards necessary to support international data interchange.
One of the central tenets of HL7 and API systems is interoperability. An international standard is required for the exchange of crucial healthcare data.
For instance, a family practitioner may need to refer a patient with a rare ailment to a specialist in a different state who uses an entirely different system to keep electronic patient information if the patient has been diagnosed with the condition. The referring physician and the expert must share patient details smoothly.
Additionally, the increased use of APIs gives typical patients more power. Thanks to an API, a smartphone app may connect a patient with their own records at any time, directly from the doctor's database.
To better understand how HL7 is used in the healthcare industry, you must comprehend the differences between FHIR and HL7.
FHIR stands for Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources and is pronounced: "fire." As the name implies, it is another data standard for the healthcare sector that utilizes an API interface. Two separate electronic health records, or EHR apps, can transmit or receive data over secure networks with the help of an FHIR.
The Health Level 7 International group created FHIR to ensure APIs deliver on their promise of enabling better and simpler communication and sharing of patient healthcare data.
Data sharing, as well as data analytics, both play an integral role in the healthcare industry. While data sharing allows physicians to collaborate with specialists to take a second opinion on a diagnosis or treatment, healthcare analytics enable solutions to help you take a holistic view of all your financial and clinical data to make more informed decisions.
PrecisionBI Lite helps you maintain and view your clinical and financial data in one place, enabling you to reduce cost, analyze your workflow and accelerate your reimbursements for a more profound revenue cycle and seamless clinical operations.
This guide discussed everything you need to know about API and HL7. Proceeding forward, we walked you through how data sharing and healthcare business analytics differ. Besides, how talkEHR’s financial healthcare data analytics solution can help you become more profitable and generate better healthcare and patient outcomes.
