The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has today published a new international review identifying best practices of interoperability in healthcare and health data secondary use to inform the development of a national interoperability framework. The review examines six EU jurisdictions. 

The international review was conducted as part of the HealthData@IE project led by the Department of Health in collaboration with HIQA, the Health Research Board (HRB), key stakeholders in the Health Service Executive and across the health system. 

Within the HealthData@IE project, one of the areas HIQA is responsible for is developing a national interoperability framework. An interoperability framework can be described as a set of standards, policies, and guidelines that ensure that information and communication technology (ICT) systems can communicate and share data seamlessly and securely. 

In healthcare, interoperability is particularly crucial and the lack of it can practically mean that healthcare professionals often do not have live access to all the key information needed when seeing a patient. On a strategic or national level, a lack of interoperability in healthcare can inhibit health policy development due to the necessary information to make informed national policy decisions not being available. 

Rachel Flynn, Director of Health Information and Standards at HIQA, said: “Our international review examined approaches to health data interoperability and secondary use across six EU jurisdictions – Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Sweden and Greece – with the aim of identifying best practices to guide future development of the health data secondary use system in Ireland.” 

“Our review highlighted several key findings, including the need for widespread adoption of health data interoperability standards to ensure that data can be effectively reused. National approaches to interoperability are also critical – each of the jurisdictions reviewed has developed a tailored model suited to its health system’s specific needs and challenges. Across the six jurisdictions, eight major interoperability frameworks were identified, each offering structured approaches to navigating the complexity of health data reuse. In addition, the review examined tools that support secondary use, which were grouped into three main categories: semantic interoperability tools, metadata tools and data transformation tools. Finally, while many challenges and barriers to secondary use remain, solutions do exist – and a proactive approach is needed to anticipate these barriers early and design practical responses.”

The findings of the international review will inform the development of a national interoperability framework and will support organisations who hold health data in Ireland to make this data more reusable. The national interoperability framework will assist organisations in meeting their obligations relating to the secondary use of health data as part of the European Health Data Space Regulation through the development of a national interoperability framework for health data exchange with the Health Data Access Body (HDAB) service in Ireland. 

HIQA is continuing to work on the HealthData@IE project, with further publications to come in 2026 and 2027.

For further information please contact:

Caoimhe O’Connell, Communications Manager 087 639 5916 / caoconnell@hiqa.ie 

Notes to the editor:

• This international review has been informed by a review of evidence, input from a HealthData@IE project Working Group, scoping meetings with key subject matter experts from the six EU jurisdictions reviewed and ongoing work at European level, including the Joint Action Towards the European Health Data Space (TEHDAS) and Second Joint Action Towards the European Health Data Space (TEHDAS2) projects as well as other key EU publications.
• The review covers six EU jurisdictions: Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Sweden and Greece and includes insights from global organisations working in health data interoperability and research infrastructure.
• HealthData@IE 2023-2027: The Department of Health, in collaboration with the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) and the Health Research Board (HRB), was awarded funding under the EU4Health programme to support the establishment of HDAB services in Ireland.
• The European Health Data Space (EHDS) Regulation aims to create a standardised health data space across the EU, allowing individuals to control and utilise their health data at home or in other Member States. It also aims to enhance the use of data for secondary purposes across the EU by making it possible for researchers, innovators and policy-makers to use this data in a trusted and secure way that preserves privacy.