HL7NZ is the New Zealand Affiliate of Health Level Seven International (HL7®), the global developer of standards for the interoperability of health information technology with members in over 55 countries.
HL7NZ is a ‘Not for Profit’ incorporated society focused on current and emerging HL7® standards, with strong relationships to all other related healthcare IT standards used in New Zealand.
2025 Annual General Meeting
The 2025 HL7 New Zealand Annual General Meeting was held on Thursday 2nd October at 3:00pm virtually via ZOOM.
The Chairman and Treasurer Annual Reports, presented to the Meeting, can be found in the minutes
At the meeting, the following members of the previous Board were re-elected: Koray Atalag, Prashanth Koval, David Moorhouse, Chris Royle, Peter Sergent, Daniel Thomson & Matthew Valentine.
At the first meeting of the new Board, held directly afterwards, the following officers were unanimously elected for two-year terms up to the end of September 2027: Peter Sergent (Vice-Chair) and David Moorhouse (Treasurer). John Carter (Chair) and Peter Jordan (Secretary) will continue in their roles until the end of September 2026, having been elected to serve two-year terms following the 2024 AGM.
HL7 New Zealand Executive Board
NZ Work Group News
The Group is meeting fortnightly and working on the next version (v4) of the NZ Base FHIR Implementation Guide. The current release (3.0.1) is available at https://fhir.org.nz/ig/base/index.html.
This Guide contains the base FHIR implementation rules for New Zealand (Extensions, Profiles Identifiers, and Terminologies). It is an ‘abstract’ artefact from which all other FHIR Implementation Guides in New Zealand may be derived, and we hope that it will continue to be a valuable resource for the local FHIR community.
We would also like to extend our continued gratitude to our members at Spark Health for kindly hosting the Guide.
End of Year 2024 Message from HL7 New Zealand
Kia ora koutou,
As 2024 reaches a close, I want to take a moment to reflect on the past year and extend my heartfelt gratitude to all our members. It’s been a year of challenges, progress, and collaboration as we continue to shape the future of health data interoperability in New Zealand.
This year, New Zealand’s Government made significant cuts and changes to the health system, including deep cuts to digital health initiatives such as Hira. These cuts have slowed progress toward greater interoperability and IT modernisation, presenting hurdles for us all.
However, these challenges also compel us to reconnect with our core values. We develop and promote HL7 standards because standards save money, improve care, and empower patients, providers, and digital health suppliers. Even in times of constraint, bringing these principles to life remains vital to the future of our health system. Together, we can navigate the current difficulties and demonstrate how interoperability fosters efficiency, equity, and better outcomes for all.
In March 2024, we hosted a Symposium and Connectathon in Auckland, which drew over 100 participants for a highly successful two-day event. With different tracks showcasing the FHIR initiatives underway at Health NZ | Te Whatu Ora, the event highlighted the incredible potential of FHIR to transform healthcare delivery. We are deeply grateful for the strong support from Health NZ in making this event possible. The countries that are succeeding at modernising and innovating with FHIR are those with strong government support, and this event was a prime example of what we can achieve with collaborative efforts.
In early December, we hosted a FHIR Workshop and Connectathon at Digital Health Week in Hamilton. While the crowds were smaller and participation from Health NZ was more limited, the attendees were highly engaged, benefiting from more interactive and tailored sessions with our expert presenters and track leads. The day’s sessions provided valuable insights and practical hands-on experiences, reaffirming the importance of bringing people together to advance the adoption of HL7 standards in New Zealand.
Looking ahead, we are excited to announce the March 2025 FHIR Symposium and Connectathon, held jointly with our Australian colleagues. This two-day event will feature:
- Day 1: A Symposium with presentations from government and industry leaders, offering insights into FHIR’s latest applications and advancements. The Symposium will be accessible virtually, allowing wide participation.
- Day 2: An in-person Connectathon in Auckland, where attendees can showcase or test their FHIR solutions and products in a collaborative setting.
If you have a FHIR solution or product you’d like to showcase or test at the Connectathon, we encourage you to get in touch!
We’re also pleased to announce the release of the NZ Base FHIR Implementation Guide version 3.0.1, now available at https://fhir.org.nz/ig/base/index.html. This version includes several technical corrections and is preferred over the earlier version 3.0.0.
For our members, discounted educational offerings remain an important benefit. We encourage you to explore the HL7 International Education Calendar, which is available to view or download at https://www.hl7.org/training/calendar.cfm. This comprehensive resource offers a wide range of courses and materials to help you whether you’re just starting out, looking to expand your knowledge, or seeking to keep up with the latest HL7 developments.
Thank you for your dedication, contributions, and commitment to our shared vision. As we step into 2025, I look forward to continuing our work together to drive innovation and improve health outcomes across New Zealand.
Wishing you a joyful holiday season and a successful new year!
John S. Carter
Chair, HL7 New Zealand
International News
The latest version of the HL7 FHIR standard (R5) was published on March 28th. Although it contains no new normative content, and is technically a trial release, there are a significant number of new resources (giving an overall total of 158) and the maturity level of many of the most-commonly used resources has increased. We would be happy to discuss the potential use of this new release within New Zealand with potential implementers as well as receiving feedback from the broader community on the roadmap for the next major release (R6).
For those continuing to use Release 4, please note that version of the specification is now available at http://hl7.org/fhir/R4/. The R4B sub release can be found at http://hl7.org/fhir/R4B/.
More Information on HL7NZ activities
Need more information or have questions you want answered, email us at admin@hl7.org.nz.
