Analyzing the key variables in the adoption process of HL7

The intention of this paper is to provide an analysis of variables that could affect the adoption of HL7 message standard. Based on the review of 33 cases where HL7 was successfully implemented the authors present relevant evidence related to inherent limitation of HL7. The result from this study indicates that it is necessary to enhance the standard to overcome particular limitations and facilitate the implementation of inter-institutional software interfaces based on HL7.