The 2022 Health Level Seven (HL7) Pediatric Care Health IT Functional Profile (HL7 PCHIT FP) standard represents a significant development in advancing child health care through electronic health records (EHR). Recently, seven industry experts (including three from Drummond) published an article, “Defining Electronic Health Record Standards for Child Health: A State-of-the-Art Review,” The article outlines the milestones in developing the new child health EHR standard and describes the salient features of this contemporary standard.
The HL7 PCHIT FP is designed to meet the comprehensive needs of patients under 21 years old across various clinical settings. It highlights functionalities that enable communication between health providers and caregivers, incorporates pediatric-specific vital signs and diagnoses, and supports transitions to adult care. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of EHR functionalities in documenting and reporting child abuse or neglect, includes school-based linkages to ensure communication between the healthcare system and educational institutions, and enhances care for children with special healthcare needs through improved coordination.
IT developers with an interest in pediatric EHRs are encouraged to read the study and to access the HL7 PCHIT Functional Profile for detailed requirements.
The study was published by American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) journal, Applied Clinical Informatics (ACI), a leading medical and science publisher.