Whenever I travel for work, one of the most common questions I hear is “How does HL7 work?”

HL7 is not always one of the sexiest subjects, but as interoperability and connectivity continue to be huge drivers in the health care space, the questions of HL7 are going to continue to be asked.

So, after a little thought, I thought I’d create a fun – and hopefully useful – video describing what HL7 is and what it does.

Think about it.  These days everyone – and their mother – are talking about EMRs and EHRs.  Well, as great at these systems may be, when it comes down to it, they’d be useless without a standard for communicating with existing health care applications and facilities.  That’s where HL7 comes it.  HL7 is not just a component of these advances in health care interoperability, but arguably one of the most important factors.  To use a web analogy, EMRs, HIS’, RIS’ and all the other systems are the equivalent to websites.  They are incredibly powerful and many people are working hard to create the most useful tools; but, just like the internet, these tools would be useless if no one was able to connect to and actually view these sites.

HL7 is what happens behinds the scenes allowing health care systems to connect and share information.

So, now that you’ve seen my latest video – How does HL7 work – and let me know what you think.  Did it make you laugh?  Do you have a better idea of what HL7 does?  Are there other topics you’d like to see discussed in a similar manner?  We’d love you hear your thoughts.