Australia’s digital health future is being built by a community of clinicians, consumers, researchers, governments, software vendors and health services working to solve one of healthcare’s biggest challenges: making health information flow safely and seamlessly to the clinicians who need it.
Today, Sparked has launched Season Three of the Sparked Podcast, a six-part series exploring how Australia’s national Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) accelerator is transforming healthcare through collaboration, innovation and community-led standards development.
This season reveals how digital health standards are improving care, enabling innovation and creating a more connected health system.
Sparked Lead, Ms Kate Ebrill, said she’s thrilled to share the fruits of the community’s labour.
“Unlike traditional technology projects, Sparked places community participation at its core,” Ms Ebrill said.
Through technical design groups, clinical working groups and extensive consultation, the program brings together those who build systems, deliver care and use healthcare services to collectively design solutions that address real-world needs.
More than 1,500 members have contributed over 30,000 volunteer hours to this initiative.
“We have now moved from gaining momentum into realising impacts,” said Ms Ebrill.
Led by CSIRO’s Australian e-Health Research Centre and delivered in partnership with the Australian Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, the Australian Digital Health Agency and HL7 Australia, Sparked is accelerating the development of nationally consistent digital health standards that allow health information to move more safely, seamlessly and meaningfully across the healthcare system.
This season explores some of the biggest opportunities and challenges facing healthcare, including:
- global interoperability reform
- national collaboration between states and territories
- Indigenous data sovereignty
- women’s digital health
- consumer empowerment
- the role of standards in enabling safe and responsible artificial intelligence.
More importantly, the series highlights the people behind the standards.
Listeners hear from clinicians, consumers, policymakers, researchers, Indigenous health leaders, technology experts and international thought leaders who are helping shape the future of healthcare through Sparked’s unique co-design model.
This collaborative approach ensures standards are not only technically robust, but also clinically relevant, culturally safe and aligned with patient and provider experiences.
“Digital health standards are often invisible to the public, but they are essential infrastructure for modern healthcare,” said Ms Kate Ebrill.
“This podcast series tells the stories behind the standards and showcases the incredible community working together through Sparked to solve shared challenges and build the foundations for better healthcare for all Australians.”
Episode one of Season Three of the Sparked Podcast is available now on major podcast platforms.