FHIR
Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources — modern RESTful healthcare interoperability standard. JSON-based, web-native. The HL7 organization's strategic successor to HL7 v2 for clinical-data interchange.
Why it matters to buyers: Strategic direction of healthcare interop. CMS and ONC push FHIR adoption — patient-access APIs (US Core, Da Vinci, Argonaut profiles) are FHIR-based. Vendor RFP language increasingly references FHIR alongside HL7.
Why it matters to engineers: Not yet dominant for imaging clinical workflow. DICOMweb (WADO-RS / QIDO-RS / STOW-RS) + FHIR ImagingStudy resource is the bridge pattern. HL7 v2 still carries the bulk of imaging-system traffic.