Interoperabilitätsinfrastrukturen

Interoperability refers to the ability of different systems, organizations, or components to exchange and make use of information and services. It enables seamless collaboration across domains, borders, and technologies. Interoperability is typically described in layers: technical interoperability (the ability to connect and transmit data), syntactic interoperability (shared data formats and protocols), semantic interoperability (shared meaning and data interpretation), and organizational interoperability (policy, governance, and process alignment).

Key requirements include common data formats and schemas, open and well-documented interfaces, and compatible security and identity frameworks. Interoperability relies on standardized protocols, APIs, data models, and metadata, as well as agreed-upon terminologies and ontologies to align meaning. Achieving interoperability often involves data mapping, data quality, and management of versioning and compatibility over time.

Standardization bodies and efforts include international and domain-specific standards such as ISO/IEC, W3C, HL7 and its FHIR standard in healthcare, DICOM for medical imaging, ISO 20022 for financial messaging, and general web standards like REST, JSON, and XML. Interoperability programs commonly involve governance structures, shared reference architectures, and conformance testing to verify compatibility.

Benefits include improved efficiency, better decision-making, reduced duplication, and enhanced safety in sectors like healthcare and transportation. Challenges include data privacy and security concerns, varying levels of technical maturity, legacy systems, semantic mismatch, and the cost of implementing and maintaining interoperable solutions.

Examples include electronic health record interoperability enabling clinicians to access patient data across providers, cross-border health data exchange, and interoperable public sector data portals supporting integrated services.