NHS Wales Integrates Encounter Data into Care Repository Using FHIR and HL7v2
NHS Wales links encounters data through national systems - HTN
NHS Wales is linking patient encounter data through national systems using FHIR R4 and Data Standards Wales FHIR profiles.
Summary
NHS Wales has integrated encounter data, including referrals and outpatient appointments, from Cardiff and Vale University Health Board into the care data repository. This effort standardizes diverse information sources to achieve a more complete picture of patient journeys and improve care coordination.
Key Players
Details
According to NHS Wales, this initiative successfully linked encounters data—such as referrals, out-patient appointments, and inpatient admissions—from Cardiff and Vale University Health Board into the Care Data Repository (CDR). The core achievement is not just data aggregation, but structuring and standardizing diverse information sources to create a comprehensive view of individual patient journeys. Technically, the process involves secure processing using HL7v2 standards. Crucially, this raw data is then carefully mapped and transformed into nationally agreed FHIR standards. This standardization ensures that the same piece of information from different sources maintains consistent meaning wherever it is used, significantly reducing the risk of misinterpretation. A key technical advancement highlighted is the mapping of HL7v2 messages originating from PAS systems into FHIR R4, alongside the use of 'Data Standards Wales FHIR profiles' to promote consistency across various organizations. This standards-based approach allows the data to support multiple uses—from patient-facing services (like the NHS Wales App) to advanced analytics via the National Data Analytics Platform (NDAP)—without requiring additional work. Looking ahead, NHS Wales plans to continue developing national reference and terminology data, onboarding more datasets into the CDR, and streaming data into the NDAP, aiming to build a comprehensive patient record.
Technology Note
FHIR（Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources）は医療データ交換の国際標準。このエントリの関連技術: FHIR R4
Original content copyright by respective publishers