During FHIR Camp 2024 in Portugal, Kurt Johnson, an integration architect and writer, engaged with various experts on topics related to FHIR and healthcare technologies. In this episode, he spoke with Gino Canessa, Principal Software Engineer at Microsoft. Gino discussed the importance of community within the FHIR ecosystem, the challenges of maintaining personal connections as the community expands, and the essential tools needed for effective implementation. They also touched on how events like FHIR Camp foster collaboration and innovation in the field.
Watch the Youtube playlist featuring interviews with Grahame Grieve, Nikolai Ryzhikov, Lloyd McKenzie, Ewout Kramer, and Maria Manuel Salazar, or read the summary below.
Q1: Can you introduce yourself and your role?
Gino Canessa:** Sure! I'm Gino Canessa, and I work at Microsoft Research in a group called Health Futures. Our goal is to improve digital healthcare everywhere, which makes my role very rewarding.
Q2: What have you learned at this year's FHIR Camp?
Gino Canessa: At this year's FHIR Camp, I've gained insights into versioning, profiling, security, and analytics related to FHIR. While I'm familiar with these topics, it's always beneficial to deepen my understanding and discover different perspectives. I particularly enjoy learning about the variances in how people interpret the specifications. For example, discussions between Grahame and Lloyd highlighted some of these differences.
Q3: Do you think FHIR Camp is successfully recapturing the spirit of the early days of FHIR?
Gino Canessa: Yes, I believe FHIR Camp has a nice atmosphere that encourages intimate and personal interactions. At larger meetings, many participants are oversubscribed and often end up in late-night meetings. Here at FHIR Camp, we can build relationships and engage in deeper discussions. As someone who joined the FHIR community relatively recently, I appreciate having space for open communication that isn't available at most events.
Q4: Is there a risk that the community could grow too large and lose its close-knit feel?
Gino Canessa: That's always a concern, especially as events become more expensive. Conferences need to balance content with participant engagement. It can be challenging to manage expectations while ensuring meaningful connections. However, newer events like this one play an important role in maintaining that personal touch.
Q5: What tools do you find essential in the Microsoft environment for working with healthcare standards?
Gino Canessa: There’s significant potential for tooling in our field. I refer to what I call the "Pyramid of Pain." At the top are a small number of people who work on the deep technical aspects of building and publishing standards. Below them is a wider group that provides feedback but doesn't edit the standard directly. Then there’s an even larger group that uses the standard. The goal is to create tools that alleviate challenges for everyone involved, especially those further down the pyramid who might face more pain if we don’t address issues at the top level.
Q6: What developments are you looking forward to in 2025 within the FHIR community?
Gino Canessa: I'm excited about moving towards R6 and finalizing ballots for it. We've been working on draft ballots and pre-existing work, so getting everything sorted out will be a significant step forward. Additionally, I'm looking forward to seeing more adoption of subscriptions as there's increasing demand for implementation in that area.
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See also: Top communities in digital health.
