Cloud Healthcare API on Google Cloud stores and processes healthcare data in FHIR, HL7v2, and DICOM formats.
What is the Cloud Healthcare API?
The Cloud Healthcare API is a fully managed service for storing, transforming, and exchanging healthcare data on Google Cloud. It enables management of clinical data in the standard formats FHIR (DSTU2, STU3, R4), HL7v2, and DICOM, and supports architectures that need to meet HIPAA and GDPR requirements.
The service offers native integration with other Google Cloud services such as BigQuery for analytics, Cloud Storage for archiving, and Google Cloud’s AI/ML services for use cases like image analysis or clinical text processing. Availability follows Google’s official SLA for the service.
Core Features
- FHIR store for structured clinical data in the DSTU2, STU3, and R4 versions
- HL7v2 store for message exchange between clinical systems
- DICOM store for medical imaging following the DICOMweb standard
- De-identification of sensitive data through built-in DLP functions
- IAM-based access control and detailed audit logs
- VPC Service Controls for network isolation
Typical Use Cases
Electronic Health Records (EHR)
Centralized storage of patient data in FHIR format enables cross-institutional data exchange. Structured data models facilitate interoperability between different hospital systems and practice management software.
Medical Image Management (PACS)
The DICOM store enables storage and retrieval of medical images such as CT, MRI, and X-rays. Connecting to Google Cloud AI services facilitates image-based analysis and diagnostic support.
Clinical Research and Analytics
Linking the Healthcare API with BigQuery enables SQL-based analysis of clinical data. De-identification of sensitive data through built-in DLP functions supports protecting patient privacy in research projects.
System Interoperability
HL7v2 message processing enables connection of existing hospital information systems. FHIR APIs provide modern RESTful interfaces for new applications and mobile health apps.
Benefits
- Fully managed service without owning infrastructure
- Support for multiple FHIR versions plus HL7v2 and DICOM
- Native connection to BigQuery and Google Cloud AI services
- Comprehensive security and compliance features (encryption, IAM, DLP, VPC Service Controls)
Integration with innFactory
As a certified Google Cloud Partner, innFactory supports the implementation of the Cloud Healthcare API: FHIR data modeling, HL7v2 migration, compliance architecture, BigQuery analytics, and connecting AI services for healthcare data.
Available Tiers & Options
Standard
- Fully managed
- Automatic scaling
- Native GCP integration
- Supports HIPAA- and GDPR-compliant architectures
- Cost depends on storage and processing volume
- Compliance configuration requires expertise
Typical Use Cases
Technical Specifications
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Cloud Healthcare API?
The Cloud Healthcare API is a fully managed Google Cloud service for storing, transforming, and exchanging healthcare data in the standard formats FHIR, HL7v2, and DICOM. It targets applications that need to securely manage medical data and exchange it with other systems.
Which data formats are supported?
The API supports FHIR in the DSTU2, STU3, and R4 versions for structured clinical data, HL7v2 for message exchange between systems, and DICOM for medical imaging following the DICOMweb standard.
Can the Cloud Healthcare API be used in a GDPR-compliant way?
The Cloud Healthcare API is available in EU regions, allowing data to be stored and processed within Europe. Whether a specific setup is GDPR-compliant also depends on the individual architecture, data processing agreements, and organizational measures.
How does integration with existing hospital systems work?
The Healthcare API provides REST APIs and client libraries for common programming languages. It supports importing HL7v2 messages from existing systems and offers FHIR APIs for modern integrations, for example via Cloud VPN or Interconnect.
What does the Cloud Healthcare API cost?
Billing is usage-based, covering storage volume, API requests, data transformations, and additional processing steps such as de-identification. Current prices are available in the official Google Cloud pricing list.
Note: All product information on this page has been compiled with care, but is provided without guarantee and may be outdated or incomplete. Cloud services evolve rapidly — features, pricing, SLAs, and availability change frequently. Authoritative and up-to-date information can only be found on the official product page of Google Cloud (official documentation). This page does not represent an offer by Google Cloud.
