Google LLC today introduced the Google Cloud Healthcare Interoperability Readiness Program, a bundle of solutions aimed at helping organizations in the healthcare sector manage patient data more effectively.

A piece of legislation called the Cures Act that passed in 2016 created new requirements around the management of medical records. Notably, it mandates that healthcare providers make patients’ information accessible via application programming interfaces. APIs provide a convenient way to share data between remote systems that, in a healthcare context, can make it easier for physicians to access the patient information they need to perform their work.

But the technology also comes with challenges. Many healthcare providers store data in legacy systems that were created before modern API-driven development because standard practice. As a result, complying with the API requirements set forth in the Cures Act can require extensive and costly code modifications, which is the challenge Google is hoping to ease with the new solution bundle announced today. 

The Google Cloud Healthcare Interoperability Readiness Program breaks down the API modernization challenge to three main parts. The bundle, the search giant says, can help healthcare providers identify where they currently stand as far as their systems’ API capabilities are concerned, map out what steps they need to take to comply with regulations and, finally, “increase their readiness.”

The bundle includes a collection of pre-packaged components called the HealthAPIx Accelerator that reduces the amount of coding required for the task. It gives developers access to pre-built API templates and sample implementations. Google has included a number of more domain-specific resources as well, including analytics tools that enable developers to collect data on their APIs to track how well they’re performing.

Also included in Google’s new solutions bundle is something it calls the “interoperability toolkit.” The toolkit provides access to “solution architectures, implementation guides, sandboxes and other resources to help accelerate interoperability adoption and streamline compliance with standards such as FHIR R4,” Google executives Aashima Gupta and Amit Zavery wrote in a blog post today. FHIR is a data interoperability standard used in the healthcare sector to ensure that applications can smoothly exchange information with one another.

The Google Cloud Healthcare Interoperability Readiness Program makes extensive use of Google Cloud’s capabilities. Two in particular form an important part of the bundle: Apigee and Healthcare API. Apigee is a service that provides various features for managing APIs, including security controls designed to block unauthorized data access attempts. The Healthcare API, in turn, provides features for managing healthcare information stored in Google Cloud.

“The Healthcare Interoperability Readiness Program aims to help free up patient data and make it more accessible across the continuum of care, as well as set up organizations for long-term success with more modern, API-first architectures,” Gupta and Zavery stated.

The new healthcare offering advances a strategy outlined by Google Cloud Chief Executive Officer Thomas Kurian early this year to make the creation of specialized solutions for vertical industries a priority. Healthcare was among the five key verticals Kurian listed as major focus areas.

Image: Google