Health Level Seven International Launches New AI Office
Health Level Seven International (HL7) has established a dedicated artificial intelligence office to guide the development of AI frameworks that are trusted, explainable, interoperable, and scalable within healthcare. This new hub aims to support AI integration across clinical, operational, and research environments globally.
HL7’s CEO, Dr. Charles Jaffe, emphasized the organization's role as a trusted global convener capable of driving standards-based AI innovation. He noted, “Artificial intelligence will fundamentally reshape healthcare delivery, evaluation and payment.”
Key Initiatives and Leadership
Dr. Daniel Vreeman is expanding his responsibilities as chief standards development officer to also serve as HL7’s chief AI officer. He will oversee AI strategy, anti-fraud initiatives, and collaborations with regulators and industry partners.
The HL7 AI Office is centered on four strategic pillars:
- Developing open standards that form the foundation for AI transparency and seamless integration.
- Providing implementers with tools and best practices for deploying AI safely.
- Creating an AI-ready interoperability stack to enable smooth data exchange.
- Leading global health AI initiatives to align standards, influence policy, and accelerate responsible innovation.
- Incubating AI innovations that contribute to the healthcare ecosystem.
Dr. Vreeman stated, “With AI poised to transform healthcare as we know it, we have an ambitious aim: to enable trustworthy, powerful AI that unlocks the potential for everyone to live in optimal health.”
The Larger Context in Healthcare IT
HL7 has a history of advancing health IT standards to improve healthcare worldwide. Since 2013, it has made primary standards and intellectual property available at no cost. This approach supports widespread adoption and interoperability.
In 2016, HL7 partnered with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to develop document rendering technology that enhances the usability of its consolidated clinical document architecture standard.
More recently, HL7 joined forces with the World Health Organization to promote the adoption of advanced open interoperability standards, particularly FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources), with multilingual support offered free of charge.
The U.S. government also supports increased adoption of FHIR through initiatives like the 2024 Draft Federal FHIR Action Plan, which outlines implementation efforts across federal agencies.
Despite progress in document exchange within healthcare, scaling FHIR for data exchange beyond secure perimeters remains a challenge. Paul Wilder, executive director of CommonWell Health Alliance, points out that dynamic methods for mass deployment of security certificates—a critical component for secure FHIR exchanges—are still under development. He expressed hope this will be resolved within a few years rather than decades.
HL7’s Ongoing Commitment
Dr. Jaffe affirmed HL7’s leadership role by stating, “HL7 has led the way with FHIR and other foundational standards developed through global collaboration. This new AI Office extends our leadership as the vendor-neutral forum where the healthcare ecosystem comes together to build the future of health data and AI systems.”
For healthcare professionals interested in expanding their AI knowledge and skills relevant to clinical and operational settings, exploring specialized AI courses can be valuable. Resources such as Complete AI Training’s latest AI courses offer focused learning paths tailored to healthcare and related fields.
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