Sparking better connected healthcare with Sparked

Each time you visit your GP, you create data that goes to your health history. That data may in some cases be written and stored in pen and paper files.  

Increasingly though, health data is stored in electronic medical records (EMRs). 

EMRs provide the potential for your health data to be exchanged between your health providers, making healthcare more seamless. 

However, for the data to be exchanged, it needs to be stored and exchanged in a common language. This common language is called a “standard”. 

Until recently, despite the growing demand for digital health services, health data has been stored in silos using different languages, so it’s been difficult to exchange. 

The result? Potential delays in getting your test results and having to tell your story every time you see a new health practitioner. Perhaps most importantly, it means the clinicians who diagnose and treat you may not have access to all the information they need. 

Enter the Sparked program. Sparked is an Accelerator program whose mission is to form a community of software developers and clinicians to agree upon a common language for exchange of data in healthcare.

Shared language depends upon community agreement and collaboration. As such, Sparked is a collaboration between the Australian Digital Health Agency, the Department of Health & Aged Care, CSIRO and HL7 Australia. 

CSIRO’s AEHRC is leading the community coordination aspect of Sparked.  

Despite first thoughts that a gathering of software engineers and clinicians might be quite a boring affair, nothing can be further from the truth. The people creating standards for healthcare are passionate about health data being used to improve healthcare for patients. The community regularly attends vibrant “connectathons” events where they gather to discuss standards. These have the energy of folks gathering to make a change.

If you’re interested in learning more about this important work, tune into the newly launched Sparked Podcast, hosted by Professor Brett Sutton, CSIRO’s Director of Health and Biosecurity.

View the first episode below.