The International Patient Summary key health data, worldwide

ISO 27269

ISO 27269:2021 – The International Patient Summary Standard

CEN TC 251 members agreed that EN 17269 should be fast tracked into ISO, turning the European standard into a fully international one. By doing so, the original CEN IPS project fulfilled its final commitment.

It is also appropriate because the definition used for the IPS uses the one expressed in an ISO technical report from 2009, i.e.,

The Fast-track process, began in July 2020, took 3 months, was balloted, and then published by ISO as ‘The International Patient Summary (ISO 27269)’ in 2021. The fast-track process provided clarity and more explanation as well as editorial changes, but it is essentially the same document. The ISO version supersedes EN 17269 as a result, retaining its initial scope focused on the IPS dataset.

The process to make the ISO standard an accepted European norm is under way, and it is expected that it will supersede EN 17269; the ISO standard has officially been adopted as EN ISO 27269 in Europe in early 2022. Elsewhere, it has already been adopted on a global scale as ISO 27269 and all future development on the CEN and ISO IPS standard (i.e., EN ISO 27269) will be carried out jointly within ISO.

The IPS data model is an important part of the IPS ecosystem, but it is not the whole IPS. The scope is explicit and notes that other services are needed to complement the data model, such as the necessary workflow, the documenting of use cases, or the generic interoperability requirements. The range of models required to offer interoperability, the terminologies, the cardinalities, ontologies, user interfaces and profiles will be required for effective governance to deliver a safe, useful, and usable solution.