HL7 International is now collecting comments in the ballot process. For additional developments and discussions, please see the Infoway Sex & Gender Working Group. Deadline for comments is April 30th, 2025.
Most digital health information systems (electronic health records) store sex and gender information as if they are the same thing. This practice has led to inappropriate and harmful care to some patients and to patients avoiding the healthcare system. In recent years, there have been efforts to modernize digital health information systems by changing how gender, sex and sexual orientation (GSSO) data are recorded in these systems. The HL7 Anatomical Inventories and Person Characteristics Project is one such effort to modernize the HL7 international messaging standards. Digital health information systems use HL7 standards when they share health information with each other.
Inaccurate anatomical representations within digital health information systems can lead to clinical assumptions, perpetuating health inequities and reducing healthcare quality. An anatomical inventory is an evidence-based digital health intervention that directly addresses underrepresentation or inaccurate representations of a patient’s organ status in digital health information systems. An anatomical inventory:
- is a detailed list or catalog of body structures that a person does or does not have
- is used to document presence, absence, or modification of a person’s body structures
- provides an accurate overview of a patient’s current anatomy
- includes surgical procedures such as organ removal, reconstruction, or transplantation where applicable
- is used to ensure patient care is tailored to their unique anatomical profile, guiding preventive screening and clinical interventions, and
- provides context for clinical decision making, accurate diagnosis, care and treatment planning, and research.
This spring, the HL7 Anatomical Inventories Logical Model is open for community comments and voting (ballot). HL7 Canada is asking Canadian stakeholders to review each ballot and share their opinions. Your voice is needed. Some portions of the ballot are very technical. Please review as much as you are comfortable. You don’t have to comment on everything.
In this round of voting, HL7 Canada has five votes for each item on the ballots. How HL7 Canada votes will depend on the comments received from the Canadian community. HL7 Canada votes as a block; meaning that if an item receives a negative comment, then all five of the HL7 Canada votes will be negative on that item. Comments must be addressed by the HL7 International organization before the release of the standards for use. After consensus is reached among voting members, the updated standards will be used by organizations and jurisdictions in Canada and globally, including hospital information systems, electronic medical record systems, laboratory information systems, patient portals, and provincial health systems.
You can access the ballot material by downloading the zip file from InfoCentral (instructions below) or by downloading the PDF and spreadsheet from the links at the bottom of this page.
Link to the HL7 Ballot package as a zip file from Infoway Central (login required)
Below are several step-by-step infographics to help you access the ballot files from InfoCentral.
How to Download the Ballot File from InfoCentral
How to unzip the Ballot File Content downloaded from InfoCentral
How to Create an InfoCentral Account
How to submit your comments
Create a Forum Post on InfoCentral
Submit to the HL7 Project Chair email anonymously
Submit Comments Directly to Infoway through InfoCentral
Links to directly download files
Download for the HL7 Logical Model: Anatomical Inventory and Person Characteristics PDF
Download for HL7 Ballot Comments Spreadsheet