Medizininformatik Initiative - ImplementationGuide - Pathologie-Befund DE v2026

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.id

Short description

Logical id of this artifact

Definition

The logical id of the resource, as used in the URL for the resource. Once assigned, this value never changes.

Comments

The only time that a resource does not have an id is when it is being submitted to the server using a create operation.

Data type

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta

Short description

Metadata about the resource

Definition

The metadata about the resource. This is content that is maintained by the infrastructure. Changes to the content might not always be associated with version changes to the resource.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

May be used to represent additional information that is not part of the basic definition of the element. To make the use of extensions safe and manageable, there is a strict set of governance applied to the definition and use of extensions. Though any implementer can define an extension, there is a set of requirements that SHALL be met as part of the definition of the extension.

Comments

There can be no stigma associated with the use of extensions by any application, project, or standard - regardless of the institution or jurisdiction that uses or defines the extensions. The use of extensions is what allows the FHIR specification to retain a core level of simplicity for everyone.

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

versionId

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.versionId

Short description

Version specific identifier

Definition

The version specific identifier, as it appears in the version portion of the URL. This value changes when the resource is created, updated, or deleted.

Comments

The server assigns this value, and ignores what the client specifies, except in the case that the server is imposing version integrity on updates/deletes.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

lastUpdated

S Σ

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.lastUpdated

Short description

When the resource version last changed

Definition

When the resource last changed - e.g. when the version changed.

Comments

This value is always populated except when the resource is first being created. The server / resource manager sets this value; what a client provides is irrelevant. This is equivalent to the HTTP Last-Modified and SHOULD have the same value on a read interaction.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

source

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.source

Short description

Identifies where the resource comes from

Definition

A uri that identifies the source system of the resource. This provides a minimal amount of Provenance information that can be used to track or differentiate the source of information in the resource. The source may identify another FHIR server, document, message, database, etc.

Comments

In the provenance resource, this corresponds to Provenance.entity.what[x]. The exact use of the source (and the implied Provenance.entity.role) is left to implementer discretion. Only one nominated source is allowed; for additional provenance details, a full Provenance resource should be used.

This element can be used to indicate where the current master source of a resource that has a canonical URL if the resource is no longer hosted at the canonical URL.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

profile

S Σ

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.profile

Short description

Profiles this resource claims to conform to

Definition

A list of profiles (references to StructureDefinition resources) that this resource claims to conform to. The URL is a reference to StructureDefinition.url.

Comments

It is up to the server and/or other infrastructure of policy to determine whether/how these claims are verified and/or updated over time. The list of profile URLs is a set.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

security

0..*

CodingBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.security

Short description

Security Labels applied to this resource

Definition

Security labels applied to this resource. These tags connect specific resources to the overall security policy and infrastructure.

Comments

The security labels can be updated without changing the stated version of the resource. The list of security labels is a set. Uniqueness is based the system/code, and version and display are ignored.

Data type

All Security Labels (extensible)

Binding

Security Labels from the Healthcare Privacy and Security Classification System.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding

tag

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.tag

Short description

Tags applied to this resource

Definition

Tags applied to this resource. Tags are intended to be used to identify and relate resources to process and workflow, and applications are not required to consider the tags when interpreting the meaning of a resource.

Comments

The tags can be updated without changing the stated version of the resource. The list of tags is a set. Uniqueness is based the system/code, and version and display are ignored.

Data type

Binding

Codes that represent various types of tags, commonly workflow-related; e.g. "Needs review by Dr. Jones".

CommonTags (example)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding

implicitRules

Σ ?!

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.implicitRules

Short description

A set of rules under which this content was created

Definition

A reference to a set of rules that were followed when the resource was constructed, and which must be understood when processing the content. Often, this is a reference to an implementation guide that defines the special rules along with other profiles etc.

Comments

Asserting this rule set restricts the content to be only understood by a limited set of trading partners. This inherently limits the usefulness of the data in the long term. However, the existing health eco-system is highly fractured, and not yet ready to define, collect, and exchange data in a generally computable sense. Wherever possible, implementers and/or specification writers should avoid using this element. Often, when used, the URL is a reference to an implementation guide that defines these special rules as part of it's narrative along with other profiles, value sets, etc.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

language

0..1

codeBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.language

Short description

Language of the resource content

Definition

The base language in which the resource is written.

Comments

Language is provided to support indexing and accessibility (typically, services such as text to speech use the language tag). The html language tag in the narrative applies to the narrative. The language tag on the resource may be used to specify the language of other presentations generated from the data in the resource. Not all the content has to be in the base language. The Resource.language should not be assumed to apply to the narrative automatically. If a language is specified, it should it also be specified on the div element in the html (see rules in HTML5 for information about the relationship between xml:lang and the html lang attribute).

Data type

Binding

A human language.

CommonLanguages (preferred)

Binding extensions

maxValueSet	AllLanguages

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

text

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.text

Short description

Text summary of the resource, for human interpretation

Alternate names

narrative, html, xhtml, display

Definition

A human-readable narrative that contains a summary of the resource and can be used to represent the content of the resource to a human. The narrative need not encode all the structured data, but is required to contain sufficient detail to make it "clinically safe" for a human to just read the narrative. Resource definitions may define what content should be represented in the narrative to ensure clinical safety.

Comments

Contained resources do not have narrative. Resources that are not contained SHOULD have a narrative. In some cases, a resource may only have text with little or no additional discrete data (as long as all minOccurs=1 elements are satisfied). This may be necessary for data from legacy systems where information is captured as a "text blob" or where text is additionally entered raw or narrated and encoded information is added later.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A
rim: Act.text?

contained

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.contained

Short description

Contained, inline Resources

Alternate names

inline resources, anonymous resources, contained resources

Definition

These resources do not have an independent existence apart from the resource that contains them - they cannot be identified independently, and nor can they have their own independent transaction scope.

Comments

This should never be done when the content can be identified properly, as once identification is lost, it is extremely difficult (and context dependent) to restore it again. Contained resources may have profiles and tags In their meta elements, but SHALL NOT have security labels.

Data type

Mappings

rim: Entity. Role, or Act
rim: N/A

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

May be used to represent additional information that is not part of the basic definition of the resource. To make the use of extensions safe and manageable, there is a strict set of governance applied to the definition and use of extensions. Though any implementer can define an extension, there is a set of requirements that SHALL be met as part of the definition of the extension.

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

modifierExtension

?! C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.modifierExtension

Short description

Extensions that cannot be ignored

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

May be used to represent additional information that is not part of the basic definition of the resource and that modifies the understanding of the element that contains it and/or the understanding of the containing element's descendants. Usually modifier elements provide negation or qualification. To make the use of extensions safe and manageable, there is a strict set of governance applied to the definition and use of extensions. Though any implementer is allowed to define an extension, there is a set of requirements that SHALL be met as part of the definition of the extension. Applications processing a resource are required to check for modifier extensions.

Modifier extensions SHALL NOT change the meaning of any elements on Resource or DomainResource (including cannot change the meaning of modifierExtension itself).

Requirements

Modifier extensions allow for extensions that cannot be safely ignored to be clearly distinguished from the vast majority of extensions which can be safely ignored. This promotes interoperability by eliminating the need for implementers to prohibit the presence of extensions. For further information, see the definition of modifier extensions.

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

identifier

S Σ

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.identifier

Short description

Business Identifier for observation

Definition

A unique identifier assigned to this observation.

Requirements

Allows observations to be distinguished and referenced.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CX / EI (occasionally, more often EI maps to a resource id or a URL)
rim: II - The Identifier class is a little looser than the v3 type II because it allows URIs as well as registered OIDs or GUIDs. Also maps to Role[classCode=IDENT]
servd: Identifier
workflow: Event.identifier
w5: FiveWs.identifier
v2: OBX.21 For OBX segments from systems without OBX-21 support a combination of ORC/OBR and OBX must be negotiated between trading partners to uniquely identify the OBX segment. Depending on how V2 has been implemented each of these may be an option: 1) OBR-3 + OBX-3 + OBX-4 or 2) OBR-3 + OBR-4 + OBX-3 + OBX-4 or 2) some other way to uniquely ID the OBR/ORC + OBX-3 + OBX-4.
rim: id

basedOn

S Σ C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.basedOn

Short description

Fulfills plan, proposal or order

Alternate names

Fulfills

Definition

A plan, proposal or order that is fulfilled in whole or in part by this event. For example, a MedicationRequest may require a patient to have laboratory test performed before it is dispensed.

Requirements

Allows tracing of authorization for the event and tracking whether proposals/recommendations were acted upon.

Comments

References SHALL be a reference to an actual FHIR resource, and SHALL be resolveable (allowing for access control, temporary unavailability, etc.). Resolution can be either by retrieval from the URL, or, where applicable by resource type, by treating an absolute reference as a canonical URL and looking it up in a local registry/repository.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.basedOn
v2: ORC
rim: .inboundRelationship[typeCode=COMP].source[moodCode=EVN]

partOf

Σ C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.partOf

Short description

Part of referenced event

Alternate names

Container

Definition

A larger event of which this particular Observation is a component or step. For example, an observation as part of a procedure.

Comments

To link an Observation to an Encounter use encounter. See the Notes below for guidance on referencing another Observation.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.partOf
v2: Varies by domain
rim: .outboundRelationship[typeCode=FLFS].target

status

S Σ ?!

1..1

codeBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.status

Short description

registered | preliminary | final | amended +

Definition

The status of the result value.

Requirements

Need to track the status of individual results. Some results are finalized before the whole report is finalized.

Comments

This element is labeled as a modifier because the status contains codes that mark the resource as not currently valid.

Data type

Binding

Codes providing the status of an observation.

ObservationStatus (required)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
workflow: Event.status
w5: FiveWs.status
sct-concept: < 445584004 |Report by finality status|
v2: OBX-11
rim: status Amended & Final are differentiated by whether it is the subject of a ControlAct event with a type of "revise"

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta

Short description

Metadata about the resource

Definition

The metadata about the resource. This is content that is maintained by the infrastructure. Changes to the content might not always be associated with version changes to the resource.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

versionId

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.versionId

Short description

Version specific identifier

Definition

The version specific identifier, as it appears in the version portion of the URL. This value changes when the resource is created, updated, or deleted.

Comments

The server assigns this value, and ignores what the client specifies, except in the case that the server is imposing version integrity on updates/deletes.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

lastUpdated

S Σ

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.lastUpdated

Short description

When the resource version last changed

Definition

When the resource last changed - e.g. when the version changed.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

source

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.source

Short description

Identifies where the resource comes from

Definition

Comments

This element can be used to indicate where the current master source of a resource that has a canonical URL if the resource is no longer hosted at the canonical URL.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

profile

S Σ

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.profile

Short description

Profiles this resource claims to conform to

Definition

A list of profiles (references to StructureDefinition resources) that this resource claims to conform to. The URL is a reference to StructureDefinition.url.

Comments

It is up to the server and/or other infrastructure of policy to determine whether/how these claims are verified and/or updated over time. The list of profile URLs is a set.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

security

0..*

CodingBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.security

Short description

Security Labels applied to this resource

Definition

Security labels applied to this resource. These tags connect specific resources to the overall security policy and infrastructure.

Comments

The security labels can be updated without changing the stated version of the resource. The list of security labels is a set. Uniqueness is based the system/code, and version and display are ignored.

Data type

All Security Labels (extensible)

Binding

Security Labels from the Healthcare Privacy and Security Classification System.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding

tag

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.tag

Short description

Tags applied to this resource

Definition

Comments

The tags can be updated without changing the stated version of the resource. The list of tags is a set. Uniqueness is based the system/code, and version and display are ignored.

Data type

Binding

Codes that represent various types of tags, commonly workflow-related; e.g. "Needs review by Dr. Jones".

CommonTags (example)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding

implicitRules

Σ ?!

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.implicitRules

Short description

A set of rules under which this content was created

Definition

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

language

0..1

codeBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.language

Short description

Language of the resource content

Definition

The base language in which the resource is written.

Comments

Data type

Binding

A human language.

CommonLanguages (preferred)

Binding extensions

maxValueSet	AllLanguages

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

text

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.text

Short description

Text summary of the resource, for human interpretation

Alternate names

narrative, html, xhtml, display

Definition

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A
rim: Act.text?

contained

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.contained

Short description

Contained, inline Resources

Alternate names

inline resources, anonymous resources, contained resources

Definition

Comments

Data type

Mappings

rim: Entity. Role, or Act
rim: N/A

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

modifierExtension

?! C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.modifierExtension

Short description

Extensions that cannot be ignored

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Modifier extensions SHALL NOT change the meaning of any elements on Resource or DomainResource (including cannot change the meaning of modifierExtension itself).

Requirements

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

identifier

S Σ

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.identifier

Short description

Business Identifier for observation

Definition

A unique identifier assigned to this observation.

Requirements

Allows observations to be distinguished and referenced.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CX / EI (occasionally, more often EI maps to a resource id or a URL)
rim: II - The Identifier class is a little looser than the v3 type II because it allows URIs as well as registered OIDs or GUIDs. Also maps to Role[classCode=IDENT]
servd: Identifier
workflow: Event.identifier
w5: FiveWs.identifier
v2: OBX.21 For OBX segments from systems without OBX-21 support a combination of ORC/OBR and OBX must be negotiated between trading partners to uniquely identify the OBX segment. Depending on how V2 has been implemented each of these may be an option: 1) OBR-3 + OBX-3 + OBX-4 or 2) OBR-3 + OBR-4 + OBX-3 + OBX-4 or 2) some other way to uniquely ID the OBR/ORC + OBX-3 + OBX-4.
rim: id

basedOn

S Σ C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.basedOn

Short description

Fulfills plan, proposal or order

Alternate names

Fulfills

Definition

A plan, proposal or order that is fulfilled in whole or in part by this event. For example, a MedicationRequest may require a patient to have laboratory test performed before it is dispensed.

Requirements

Allows tracing of authorization for the event and tracking whether proposals/recommendations were acted upon.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.basedOn
v2: ORC
rim: .inboundRelationship[typeCode=COMP].source[moodCode=EVN]

partOf

Σ C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.partOf

Short description

Part of referenced event

Alternate names

Container

Definition

A larger event of which this particular Observation is a component or step. For example, an observation as part of a procedure.

Comments

To link an Observation to an Encounter use encounter. See the Notes below for guidance on referencing another Observation.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.partOf
v2: Varies by domain
rim: .outboundRelationship[typeCode=FLFS].target

status

S Σ ?!

1..1

codeBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.status

Short description

registered | preliminary | final | amended +

Definition

The status of the result value.

Requirements

Need to track the status of individual results. Some results are finalized before the whole report is finalized.

Comments

This element is labeled as a modifier because the status contains codes that mark the resource as not currently valid.

Data type

Binding

Codes providing the status of an observation.

ObservationStatus (required)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
workflow: Event.status
w5: FiveWs.status
sct-concept: < 445584004 |Report by finality status|
v2: OBX-11
rim: status Amended & Final are differentiated by whether it is the subject of a ControlAct event with a type of "revise"

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta

Short description

Metadata about the resource

Definition

The metadata about the resource. This is content that is maintained by the infrastructure. Changes to the content might not always be associated with version changes to the resource.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

versionId

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.versionId

Short description

Version specific identifier

Definition

The version specific identifier, as it appears in the version portion of the URL. This value changes when the resource is created, updated, or deleted.

Comments

The server assigns this value, and ignores what the client specifies, except in the case that the server is imposing version integrity on updates/deletes.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

lastUpdated

S Σ

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.lastUpdated

Short description

When the resource version last changed

Definition

When the resource last changed - e.g. when the version changed.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

source

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.source

Short description

Identifies where the resource comes from

Definition

Comments

This element can be used to indicate where the current master source of a resource that has a canonical URL if the resource is no longer hosted at the canonical URL.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

profile

S Σ

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.profile

Short description

Profiles this resource claims to conform to

Definition

A list of profiles (references to StructureDefinition resources) that this resource claims to conform to. The URL is a reference to StructureDefinition.url.

Comments

It is up to the server and/or other infrastructure of policy to determine whether/how these claims are verified and/or updated over time. The list of profile URLs is a set.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

security

0..*

CodingBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.security

Short description

Security Labels applied to this resource

Definition

Security labels applied to this resource. These tags connect specific resources to the overall security policy and infrastructure.

Comments

The security labels can be updated without changing the stated version of the resource. The list of security labels is a set. Uniqueness is based the system/code, and version and display are ignored.

Data type

All Security Labels (extensible)

Binding

Security Labels from the Healthcare Privacy and Security Classification System.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding

tag

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.meta.tag

Short description

Tags applied to this resource

Definition

Comments

The tags can be updated without changing the stated version of the resource. The list of tags is a set. Uniqueness is based the system/code, and version and display are ignored.

Data type

Binding

Codes that represent various types of tags, commonly workflow-related; e.g. "Needs review by Dr. Jones".

CommonTags (example)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding

implicitRules

Σ ?!

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.implicitRules

Short description

A set of rules under which this content was created

Definition

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

language

0..1

codeBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.language

Short description

Language of the resource content

Definition

The base language in which the resource is written.

Comments

Data type

Binding

A human language.

CommonLanguages (preferred)

Binding extensions

maxValueSet	AllLanguages

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a

text

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.text

Short description

Text summary of the resource, for human interpretation

Alternate names

narrative, html, xhtml, display

Definition

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A
rim: Act.text?

contained

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.contained

Short description

Contained, inline Resources

Alternate names

inline resources, anonymous resources, contained resources

Definition

Comments

Data type

Mappings

rim: Entity. Role, or Act
rim: N/A

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

modifierExtension

?! C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.modifierExtension

Short description

Extensions that cannot be ignored

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Modifier extensions SHALL NOT change the meaning of any elements on Resource or DomainResource (including cannot change the meaning of modifierExtension itself).

Requirements

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

identifier

S Σ

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.identifier

Short description

Business Identifier for observation

Definition

A unique identifier assigned to this observation.

Requirements

Allows observations to be distinguished and referenced.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CX / EI (occasionally, more often EI maps to a resource id or a URL)
rim: II - The Identifier class is a little looser than the v3 type II because it allows URIs as well as registered OIDs or GUIDs. Also maps to Role[classCode=IDENT]
servd: Identifier
workflow: Event.identifier
w5: FiveWs.identifier
v2: OBX.21 For OBX segments from systems without OBX-21 support a combination of ORC/OBR and OBX must be negotiated between trading partners to uniquely identify the OBX segment. Depending on how V2 has been implemented each of these may be an option: 1) OBR-3 + OBX-3 + OBX-4 or 2) OBR-3 + OBR-4 + OBX-3 + OBX-4 or 2) some other way to uniquely ID the OBR/ORC + OBX-3 + OBX-4.
rim: id

basedOn

S Σ C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.basedOn

Short description

Fulfills plan, proposal or order

Alternate names

Fulfills

Definition

A plan, proposal or order that is fulfilled in whole or in part by this event. For example, a MedicationRequest may require a patient to have laboratory test performed before it is dispensed.

Requirements

Allows tracing of authorization for the event and tracking whether proposals/recommendations were acted upon.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.basedOn
v2: ORC
rim: .inboundRelationship[typeCode=COMP].source[moodCode=EVN]

partOf

Σ C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.partOf

Short description

Part of referenced event

Alternate names

Container

Definition

A larger event of which this particular Observation is a component or step. For example, an observation as part of a procedure.

Comments

To link an Observation to an Encounter use encounter. See the Notes below for guidance on referencing another Observation.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.partOf
v2: Varies by domain
rim: .outboundRelationship[typeCode=FLFS].target

status

S Σ ?!

1..1

codeBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.status

Short description

registered | preliminary | final | amended +

Definition

The status of the result value.

Requirements

Need to track the status of individual results. Some results are finalized before the whole report is finalized.

Comments

This element is labeled as a modifier because the status contains codes that mark the resource as not currently valid.

Data type

Binding

Codes providing the status of an observation.

ObservationStatus (required)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
workflow: Event.status
w5: FiveWs.status
sct-concept: < 445584004 |Report by finality status|
v2: OBX-11
rim: status Amended & Final are differentiated by whether it is the subject of a ControlAct event with a type of "revise"

category

1..*

CodeableConceptBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category

Short description

Classification of type of observation

Definition

A code that classifies the general type of observation being made.

Requirements

Used for filtering what observations are retrieved and displayed.

Comments

Data type

ObservationCategoryCodes (preferred)

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by $this(Pattern)

Binding

Codes for high level observation categories.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
w5: FiveWs.class
rim: .outboundRelationship[typeCode="COMP].target[classCode="LIST", moodCode="EVN"].code

(All Slices)

The requirements in this element apply to all slices

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

coding

S Σ

1..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.coding

Short description

Code defined by a terminology system

Definition

A reference to a code defined by a terminology system.

Requirements

Allows for alternative encodings within a code system, and translations to other code systems.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding
v2: C*E.1-8, C*E.10-22
rim: union(., ./translation)
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept.coding rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CD.coding

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.coding.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.coding.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

system

S Σ

1..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.coding.system

Short description

Identity of the terminology system

Definition

The identification of the code system that defines the meaning of the symbol in the code.

Requirements

Need to be unambiguous about the source of the definition of the symbol.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.3
rim: ./codeSystem
orim: fhir:Coding.system rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.codeSystem

version

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.coding.version

Short description

Version of the system - if relevant

Definition

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.7
rim: ./codeSystemVersion
orim: fhir:Coding.version rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.codeSystemVersion

code

S Σ

1..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.coding.code

Short description

Symbol in syntax defined by the system

Definition

A symbol in syntax defined by the system. The symbol may be a predefined code or an expression in a syntax defined by the coding system (e.g. post-coordination).

Requirements

Need to refer to a particular code in the system.

Comments

Note that FHIR strings SHALL NOT exceed 1MB in size

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.1
rim: ./code
orim: fhir:Coding.code rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.code

display

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.coding.display

Short description

Representation defined by the system

Definition

A representation of the meaning of the code in the system, following the rules of the system.

Requirements

Need to be able to carry a human-readable meaning of the code for readers that do not know the system.

Comments

Note that FHIR strings SHALL NOT exceed 1MB in size

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.2 - but note this is not well followed
rim: CV.displayName
orim: fhir:Coding.display rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.displayName

userSelected

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.coding.userSelected

Short description

If this coding was chosen directly by the user

Definition

Indicates that this coding was chosen by a user directly - e.g. off a pick list of available items (codes or displays).

Requirements

This has been identified as a clinical safety criterium - that this exact system/code pair was chosen explicitly, rather than inferred by the system based on some rules or language processing.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: Sometimes implied by being first
rim: CD.codingRationale
orim: fhir:Coding.userSelected fhir:mapsTo dt:CDCoding.codingRationale. fhir:Coding.userSelected fhir:hasMap fhir:Coding.userSelected.map. fhir:Coding.userSelected.map a fhir:Map; fhir:target dt:CDCoding.codingRationale. fhir:Coding.userSelected\#true a [ fhir:source "true"; fhir:target dt:CDCoding.codingRationale\#O ]

text

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category.text

Short description

Plain text representation of the concept

Definition

A human language representation of the concept as seen/selected/uttered by the user who entered the data and/or which represents the intended meaning of the user.

Requirements

Comments

Very often the text is the same as a displayName of one of the codings.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.9. But note many systems use C*E.2 for this
rim: ./originalText[mediaType/code="text/plain"]/data
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept.text rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CD.originalText

laboratory-category

1..1

CodeableConceptBindingPattern

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.category:laboratory-category

Short description

Classification of type of observation

Definition

A code that classifies the general type of observation being made.

Requirements

Used for filtering what observations are retrieved and displayed.

Comments

Data type

ObservationCategoryCodes (preferred)

Binding

Codes for high level observation categories.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Pattern

{
  "coding": [
    {
      "system": "http://terminology.hl7.org/CodeSystem/observation-category",
      "code": "laboratory"
    }
  ]
}

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
w5: FiveWs.class
rim: .outboundRelationship[typeCode="COMP].target[classCode="LIST", moodCode="EVN"].code

code

S Σ

1..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code

Short description

Type of observation (code / type)

Alternate names

Name

Definition

Describes what was observed. Sometimes this is called the observation "name".

Requirements

Knowing what kind of observation is being made is essential to understanding the observation.

Comments

All code-value and, if present, component.code-component.value pairs need to be taken into account to correctly understand the meaning of the observation.

Data type

Binding

Codes identifying names of simple observations.

LOINCCodes (example)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
workflow: Event.code
w5: FiveWs.what[x]
sct-concept: < 363787002 |Observable entity| OR < 386053000 |Evaluation procedure|
v2: OBX-3
rim: code
sct-attr: 116680003 |Is a|

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

coding

S Σ

1..*

CodingBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.coding

Short description

Code defined by a terminology system

Definition

A reference to a code defined by a terminology system.

Requirements

Allows for alternative encodings within a code system, and translations to other code systems.

Comments

Data type

MII_VS_Patho_All_LOINC (preferred)

Binding

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding
v2: C*E.1-8, C*E.10-22
rim: union(., ./translation)
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept.coding rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CD.coding

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.coding.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.coding.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

system

S Σ

1..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.coding.system

Short description

Identity of the terminology system

Definition

The identification of the code system that defines the meaning of the symbol in the code.

Requirements

Need to be unambiguous about the source of the definition of the symbol.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.3
rim: ./codeSystem
orim: fhir:Coding.system rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.codeSystem

version

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.coding.version

Short description

Version of the system - if relevant

Definition

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.7
rim: ./codeSystemVersion
orim: fhir:Coding.version rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.codeSystemVersion

code

S Σ

1..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.coding.code

Short description

Symbol in syntax defined by the system

Definition

A symbol in syntax defined by the system. The symbol may be a predefined code or an expression in a syntax defined by the coding system (e.g. post-coordination).

Requirements

Need to refer to a particular code in the system.

Comments

Note that FHIR strings SHALL NOT exceed 1MB in size

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.1
rim: ./code
orim: fhir:Coding.code rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.code

display

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.coding.display

Short description

Representation defined by the system

Definition

A representation of the meaning of the code in the system, following the rules of the system.

Requirements

Need to be able to carry a human-readable meaning of the code for readers that do not know the system.

Comments

Note that FHIR strings SHALL NOT exceed 1MB in size

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.2 - but note this is not well followed
rim: CV.displayName
orim: fhir:Coding.display rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.displayName

userSelected

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.coding.userSelected

Short description

If this coding was chosen directly by the user

Definition

Indicates that this coding was chosen by a user directly - e.g. off a pick list of available items (codes or displays).

Requirements

This has been identified as a clinical safety criterium - that this exact system/code pair was chosen explicitly, rather than inferred by the system based on some rules or language processing.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: Sometimes implied by being first
rim: CD.codingRationale
orim: fhir:Coding.userSelected fhir:mapsTo dt:CDCoding.codingRationale. fhir:Coding.userSelected fhir:hasMap fhir:Coding.userSelected.map. fhir:Coding.userSelected.map a fhir:Map; fhir:target dt:CDCoding.codingRationale. fhir:Coding.userSelected\#true a [ fhir:source "true"; fhir:target dt:CDCoding.codingRationale\#O ]

text

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.code.text

Short description

Plain text representation of the concept

Definition

A human language representation of the concept as seen/selected/uttered by the user who entered the data and/or which represents the intended meaning of the user.

Requirements

Comments

Very often the text is the same as a displayName of one of the codings.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.9. But note many systems use C*E.2 for this
rim: ./originalText[mediaType/code="text/plain"]/data
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept.text rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CD.originalText

subject

S Σ C

0..1

Reference(Patient)

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.subject

Short description

Who and/or what the observation is about

Definition

Requirements

Observations have no value if you don't know who or what they're about.

Comments

Data type

Reference(Patient)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.subject
w5: FiveWs.subject[x]
v2: PID-3
rim: participation[typeCode=RTGT]
w5: FiveWs.subject

focus

Σ C

0..*

Reference(Resource)

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.focus

Short description

What the observation is about, when it is not about the subject of record

Definition

Comments

Data type

Reference(Resource)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
w5: FiveWs.subject[x]
v2: OBX-3
rim: participation[typeCode=SBJ]
w5: FiveWs.subject

encounter

Σ C

0..1

Reference(Encounter)

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.encounter

Short description

Healthcare event during which this observation is made

Alternate names

Context

Definition

The healthcare event (e.g. a patient and healthcare provider interaction) during which this observation is made.

Requirements

For some observations it may be important to know the link between an observation and a particular encounter.

Comments

Data type

Reference(Encounter)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.context
w5: FiveWs.context
v2: PV1
rim: inboundRelationship[typeCode=COMP].source[classCode=ENC, moodCode=EVN]

effective[x]

S Σ

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.effective[x]

Short description

Clinically relevant time/time-period for observation

Alternate names

Occurrence

Definition

Requirements

Knowing when an observation was deemed true is important to its relevance as well as determining trends.

Comments

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
workflow: Event.occurrence[x]
w5: FiveWs.done[x]
v2: OBX-14, and/or OBX-19 after v2.4 (depends on who observation made)
rim: effectiveTime

effectiveDateTime

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

issued

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.issued

Short description

Date/Time this version was made available

Definition

The date and time this version of the observation was made available to providers, typically after the results have been reviewed and verified.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
w5: FiveWs.recorded
v2: OBR.22 (or MSH.7), or perhaps OBX-19 (depends on who observation made)
rim: participation[typeCode=AUT].time

performer

Σ C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.performer

Short description

Who is responsible for the observation

Definition

Who was responsible for asserting the observed value as "true".

Requirements

May give a degree of confidence in the observation and also indicates where follow-up questions should be directed.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
workflow: Event.performer.actor
w5: FiveWs.actor
v2: OBX.15 / (Practitioner) OBX-16, PRT-5:PRT-4='RO' / (Device) OBX-18 , PRT-10:PRT-4='EQUIP' / (Organization) OBX-23, PRT-8:PRT-4='PO'
rim: participation[typeCode=PRF]

value[x]

Σ C

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.value[x]

Short description

Actual result

Definition

The information determined as a result of making the observation, if the information has a simple value.

Requirements

An observation exists to have a value, though it might not if it is in error, or if it represents a group of observations.

Comments

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1, obs-7

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
sct-concept: < 441742003 |Evaluation finding|
v2: OBX.2, OBX.5, OBX.6
rim: value
sct-attr: 363714003 |Interprets|

valueBoolean

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueCodeableConcept

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueDateTime

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueInteger

integer

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

integer

valuePeriod

Period

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

Period

valueQuantity

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueRange

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueRatio

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueSampledData

SampledData

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

SampledData

valueString

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueTime

time

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

time

dataAbsentReason

0..1

CodeableConceptBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.dataAbsentReason

Short description

Why the result is missing

Definition

Provides a reason why the expected value in the element Observation.value[x] is missing.

Requirements

For many results it is necessary to handle exceptional values in measurements.

Comments

Data type

Binding

Codes specifying why the result (Observation.value[x]) is missing.

DataAbsentReason (extensible)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1, obs-6

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
v2: N/A
rim: value.nullFlavor

interpretation

0..*

CodeableConceptBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.interpretation

Short description

High, low, normal, etc.

Alternate names

Abnormal Flag

Definition

A categorical assessment of an observation value. For example, high, low, normal.

Requirements

For some results, particularly numeric results, an interpretation is necessary to fully understand the significance of a result.

Comments

Data type

ObservationInterpretationCodes (extensible)

Binding

Codes identifying interpretations of observations.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
sct-concept: < 260245000 |Findings values|
v2: OBX-8
rim: interpretationCode
sct-attr: 363713009 |Has interpretation|

note

0..*

Annotation

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.note

Short description

Comments about the observation

Definition

Comments about the observation or the results.

Requirements

Need to be able to provide free text additional information.

Comments

May include general statements about the observation, or statements about significant, unexpected or unreliable results values, or information about its source when relevant to its interpretation.

Data type

Annotation

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: N/A
rim: Act
v2: NTE.3 (partner NTE to OBX, or sometimes another (child?) OBX)
rim: subjectOf.observationEvent[code="annotation"].value

bodySite

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite

Short description

Observed body part

Definition

Indicates the site on the subject's body where the observation was made (i.e. the target site).

Comments

Only used if not implicit in code found in Observation.code. In many systems, this may be represented as a related observation instead of an inline component.

If the use case requires BodySite to be handled as a separate resource (e.g. to identify and track separately) then use the standard extension bodySite.

Data type

SNOMEDCTBodyStructures (example)

Binding

Codes describing anatomical locations. May include laterality.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
sct-concept: < 123037004 |Body structure|
v2: OBX-20
rim: targetSiteCode
sct-attr: 718497002 |Inherent location|

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

coding

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding

Short description

Code defined by a terminology system

Definition

A reference to a code defined by a terminology system.

Requirements

Allows for alternative encodings within a code system, and translations to other code systems.

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by $this(Pattern)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding
v2: C*E.1-8, C*E.10-22
rim: union(., ./translation)
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept.coding rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CD.coding

sct

S Σ

0..1

CodingBindingPattern

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding:sct

Short description

Code defined by a terminology system

Definition

A reference to a code defined by a terminology system.

Requirements

Allows for alternative encodings within a code system, and translations to other code systems.

Comments

Data type

https://www.medizininformatik-initiative.de/fhir/ext/modul-biobank/ValueSet/sct-body-structures (required)

Binding

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Pattern

{
  "system": "http://snomed.info/sct"
}

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE subset one of the sets of component 1-3 or 4-6
rim: CV
orim: fhir:Coding rdfs:subClassOf dt:CDCoding
v2: C*E.1-8, C*E.10-22
rim: union(., ./translation)
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept.coding rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CD.coding

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding:sct.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding:sct.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

system

S Σ

1..1

uriPattern

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding:sct.system

Short description

Identity of the terminology system

Definition

The identification of the code system that defines the meaning of the symbol in the code.

Requirements

Need to be unambiguous about the source of the definition of the symbol.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Pattern

http://snomed.info/sct

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.3
rim: ./codeSystem
orim: fhir:Coding.system rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.codeSystem

version

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding:sct.version

Short description

Version of the system - if relevant

Definition

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.7
rim: ./codeSystemVersion
orim: fhir:Coding.version rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.codeSystemVersion

code

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding:sct.code

Short description

Symbol in syntax defined by the system

Definition

A symbol in syntax defined by the system. The symbol may be a predefined code or an expression in a syntax defined by the coding system (e.g. post-coordination).

Requirements

Need to refer to a particular code in the system.

Comments

Note that FHIR strings SHALL NOT exceed 1MB in size

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.1
rim: ./code
orim: fhir:Coding.code rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.code

display

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding:sct.display

Short description

Representation defined by the system

Definition

A representation of the meaning of the code in the system, following the rules of the system.

Requirements

Need to be able to carry a human-readable meaning of the code for readers that do not know the system.

Comments

Note that FHIR strings SHALL NOT exceed 1MB in size

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.2 - but note this is not well followed
rim: CV.displayName
orim: fhir:Coding.display rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CDCoding.displayName

userSelected

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.coding:sct.userSelected

Short description

If this coding was chosen directly by the user

Definition

Indicates that this coding was chosen by a user directly - e.g. off a pick list of available items (codes or displays).

Requirements

This has been identified as a clinical safety criterium - that this exact system/code pair was chosen explicitly, rather than inferred by the system based on some rules or language processing.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: Sometimes implied by being first
rim: CD.codingRationale
orim: fhir:Coding.userSelected fhir:mapsTo dt:CDCoding.codingRationale. fhir:Coding.userSelected fhir:hasMap fhir:Coding.userSelected.map. fhir:Coding.userSelected.map a fhir:Map; fhir:target dt:CDCoding.codingRationale. fhir:Coding.userSelected\#true a [ fhir:source "true"; fhir:target dt:CDCoding.codingRationale\#O ]

text

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.bodySite.text

Short description

Plain text representation of the concept

Definition

A human language representation of the concept as seen/selected/uttered by the user who entered the data and/or which represents the intended meaning of the user.

Requirements

Comments

Very often the text is the same as a displayName of one of the codings.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: C*E.9. But note many systems use C*E.2 for this
rim: ./originalText[mediaType/code="text/plain"]/data
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept.text rdfs:subPropertyOf dt:CD.originalText

method

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.method

Short description

How it was done

Definition

Indicates the mechanism used to perform the observation.

Requirements

In some cases, method can impact results and is thus used for determining whether results can be compared or determining significance of results.

Comments

Only used if not implicit in code for Observation.code.

Data type

Binding

Methods for simple observations.

ObservationMethods (example)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
v2: OBX-17
rim: methodCode

specimen

S C

0..1

Reference(Specimen)

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.specimen

Short description

Specimen used for this observation

Definition

The specimen that was used when this observation was made.

Comments

Data type

Reference(Specimen)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
sct-concept: < 123038009 |Specimen|
v2: SPM segment
rim: participation[typeCode=SPC].specimen
sct-attr: 704319004 |Inherent in|

device

0..1

Reference(Device | DeviceMetric)

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.device

Short description

(Measurement) Device

Definition

The device used to generate the observation data.

Comments

Note that this is not meant to represent a device involved in the transmission of the result, e.g., a gateway. Such devices may be documented using the Provenance resource where relevant.

Data type

Reference(Device | DeviceMetric)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
sct-concept: < 49062001 |Device|
v2: OBX-17 / PRT -10
rim: participation[typeCode=DEV]
sct-attr: 424226004 |Using device|

referenceRange

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange

Short description

Provides guide for interpretation

Definition

Requirements

Knowing what values are considered "normal" can help evaluate the significance of a particular result. Need to be able to provide multiple reference ranges for different contexts.

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
obs-3: Must have at least a low or a high or text
low.exists() or high.exists() or text.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: OBX.7
rim: outboundRelationship[typeCode=REFV]/target[classCode=OBS, moodCode=EVN]

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

modifierExtension

Σ ?! C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.modifierExtension

Short description

Extensions that cannot be ignored even if unrecognized

Alternate names

extensions, user content, modifiers

Definition

Modifier extensions SHALL NOT change the meaning of any elements on Resource or DomainResource (including cannot change the meaning of modifierExtension itself).

Requirements

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

low

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.low

Short description

Low Range, if relevant

Definition

Comments

The context of use may frequently define what kind of quantity this is and therefore what kind of units can be used. The context of use may also restrict the values for the comparator.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1, obs-3

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
qty-3: If a code for the unit is present, the system SHALL also be present
code.empty() or system.exists()
sqty-1: The comparator is not used on a SimpleQuantity
comparator.empty()

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: SN (see also Range) or CQ
rim: PQ, IVL<PQ>, MO, CO, depending on the values
v2: OBX-7
rim: value:IVL_PQ.low

high

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.high

Short description

High Range, if relevant

Definition

Comments

The context of use may frequently define what kind of quantity this is and therefore what kind of units can be used. The context of use may also restrict the values for the comparator.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1, obs-3

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
qty-3: If a code for the unit is present, the system SHALL also be present
code.empty() or system.exists()
sqty-1: The comparator is not used on a SimpleQuantity
comparator.empty()

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: SN (see also Range) or CQ
rim: PQ, IVL<PQ>, MO, CO, depending on the values
v2: OBX-7
rim: value:IVL_PQ.high

type

0..1

CodeableConceptBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.type

Short description

Reference range qualifier

Definition

Codes to indicate the what part of the targeted reference population it applies to. For example, the normal or therapeutic range.

Requirements

Need to be able to say what kind of reference range this is - normal, recommended, therapeutic, etc., - for proper interpretation.

Comments

This SHOULD be populated if there is more than one range. If this element is not present then the normal range is assumed.

Data type

ObservationReferenceRangeMeaningCodes (preferred)

Binding

Code for the meaning of a reference range.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
sct-concept: < 260245000 |Findings values| OR < 365860008 |General clinical state finding| OR < 250171008 |Clinical history or observation findings| OR < 415229000 |Racial group| OR < 365400002 |Finding of puberty stage| OR < 443938003 |Procedure carried out on subject|
v2: OBX-10
rim: interpretationCode

appliesTo

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.appliesTo

Short description

Reference range population

Definition

Requirements

Need to be able to identify the target population for proper interpretation.

Comments

This SHOULD be populated if there is more than one range. If this element is not present then the normal population is assumed.

Data type

ObservationReferenceRangeAppliesToCodes (example)

Binding

Codes identifying the population the reference range applies to.

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
sct-concept: < 260245000 |Findings values| OR < 365860008 |General clinical state finding| OR < 250171008 |Clinical history or observation findings| OR < 415229000 |Racial group| OR < 365400002 |Finding of puberty stage| OR < 443938003 |Procedure carried out on subject|
v2: OBX-10
rim: interpretationCode

age

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.age

Short description

Applicable age range, if relevant

Definition

The age at which this reference range is applicable. This is a neonatal age (e.g. number of weeks at term) if the meaning says so.

Requirements

Some analytes vary greatly over age.

Comments

The stated low and high value are assumed to have arbitrarily high precision when it comes to determining which values are in the range. I.e. 1.99 is not in the range 2 -> 3.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
rng-2: If present, low SHALL have a lower value than high
low.empty() or high.empty() or (low <= high)

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: NR and also possibly SN (but see also quantity)
rim: IVL<QTY[not(type="TS")]> [lowClosed="true" and highClosed="true"]or URG<QTY[not(type="TS")]>
rim: outboundRelationship[typeCode=PRCN].targetObservationCriterion[code="age"].value

text

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.referenceRange.text

Short description

Text based reference range in an observation

Definition

Comments

Note that FHIR strings SHALL NOT exceed 1MB in size

Data type

Reference(MII_PR_Patho_Finding)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: OBX-7
rim: value:ST

hasMember

S Σ C

0..*

Reference(MolecularSequence | Observation | QuestionnaireResponse)

Element id

Observation.hasMember

Short description

Related resource that belongs to the Observation group

Definition

This observation is a group observation (e.g. a battery, a panel of tests, a set of vital sign measurements) that includes the target as a member of the group.

Comments

Data type

Reference(MolecularSequence | Observation | QuestionnaireResponse)

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by $this.resolve()(Type)

Reference to pathology findings

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
v2: Relationships established by OBX-4 usage
rim: outBoundRelationship

pathology-finding

S Σ C

0..*

Element id

Observation.hasMember:pathology-finding

Short description

Related resource that belongs to the Observation group

Definition

This observation is a group observation (e.g. a battery, a panel of tests, a set of vital sign measurements) that includes the target as a member of the group.

Comments

Data type

Reference(MII_PR_Patho_Finding)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
v2: Relationships established by OBX-4 usage
rim: outBoundRelationship

derivedFrom

S Σ C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.derivedFrom

Short description

Related measurements the observation is made from

Definition

The target resource that represents a measurement from which this observation value is derived. For example, a calculated anion gap or a fetal measurement based on an ultrasound image.

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by $this.resolve()(Type)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
v2: Relationships established by OBX-4 usage
rim: .targetObservation

attached-image

S Σ C

0..*

Reference(MII_PR_Patho_Attached_Image)

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.derivedFrom:attached-image

Short description

Related measurements the observation is made from

Definition

The target resource that represents a measurement from which this observation value is derived. For example, a calculated anion gap or a fetal measurement based on an ultrasound image.

Comments

Data type

Reference(MII_PR_Patho_Attached_Image)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
v2: Relationships established by OBX-4 usage
rim: .targetObservation

dicom-image

S Σ C

0..*

Reference(ImagingStudy)

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.derivedFrom:dicom-image

Short description

Related measurements the observation is made from

Definition

The target resource that represents a measurement from which this observation value is derived. For example, a calculated anion gap or a fetal measurement based on an ultrasound image.

Comments

Data type

Reference(ImagingStudy)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ref-1: SHALL have a contained resource if a local reference is provided
reference.startsWith('#').not() or (reference.substring(1).trace('url') in %rootResource.contained.id.trace('ids'))

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: The target of a resource reference is a RIM entry point (Act, Role, or Entity)
v2: Relationships established by OBX-4 usage
rim: .targetObservation

component

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.component

Short description

Component results

Definition

Requirements

Comments

For a discussion on the ways Observations can be assembled in groups together see Notes below.

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: containment by OBX-4?
rim: outBoundRelationship[typeCode=COMP]

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.component.id

Short description

Unique id for inter-element referencing

Definition

Unique id for the element within a resource (for internal references). This may be any string value that does not contain spaces.

Data type

Mappings

rim: n/a

extension

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.component.extension

Short description

Additional content defined by implementations

Alternate names

extensions, user content

Definition

Comments

Data type

Slicing

Unordered, Open, by url(Value)

Extensions are always sliced by (at least) url

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

modifierExtension

Σ ?! C

0..*

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.component.modifierExtension

Short description

Extensions that cannot be ignored even if unrecognized

Alternate names

extensions, user content, modifiers

Definition

Modifier extensions SHALL NOT change the meaning of any elements on Resource or DomainResource (including cannot change the meaning of modifierExtension itself).

Requirements

Comments

Data type

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1: Must have either extensions or value[x], not both
extension.exists() != value.exists()

Mappings

rim: n/a
rim: N/A

code

S Σ

1..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.component.code

Short description

Type of component observation (code / type)

Definition

Describes what was observed. Sometimes this is called the observation "code".

Requirements

Knowing what kind of observation is being made is essential to understanding the observation.

Comments

All code-value and component.code-component.value pairs need to be taken into account to correctly understand the meaning of the observation.

Data type

Binding

Codes identifying names of simple observations.

LOINCCodes (example)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
w5: FiveWs.what[x]
sct-concept: < 363787002 |Observable entity| OR < 386053000 |Evaluation procedure|
v2: OBX-3
rim: code

value[x]

0..1

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.component.value[x]

Short description

Actual component result

Definition

The information determined as a result of making the observation, if the information has a simple value.

Requirements

An observation exists to have a value, though it might not if it is in error, or if it represents a group of observations.

Comments

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
sct-concept: 363714003 |Interprets| < 441742003 |Evaluation finding|
v2: OBX.2, OBX.5, OBX.6
rim: value
sct-attr: 363714003 |Interprets|

valueCodeableConcept

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueQuantity

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueRatio

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

valueString

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Data type

dataAbsentReason

S C

0..1

CodeableConceptBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.component.dataAbsentReason

Short description

Why the component result is missing

Definition

Provides a reason why the expected value in the element Observation.component.value[x] is missing.

Requirements

For many results it is necessary to handle exceptional values in measurements.

Comments

Data type

Binding

Codes specifying why the result (Observation.value[x]) is missing.

DataAbsentReason (extensible)

Conditions

The cardinality or value of this element may be affected by these constraints: ele-1, obs-6

Constraints

ele-1: All FHIR elements must have a @value or children
hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())

Mappings

rim: n/a
v2: CE/CNE/CWE
rim: CD
orim: fhir:CodeableConcept rdfs:subClassOf dt:CD
v2: N/A
rim: value.nullFlavor

interpretation

0..*

CodeableConceptBinding

There are no (further) constraints on this element

Element id

Observation.component.interpretation

Short description

High, low, normal, etc.

Alternate names

Abnormal Flag

Definition

A categorical assessment of an observation value. For example, high, low, normal.

Requirements

For some results, particularly numeric results, an interpretation is necessary to fully understand the significance of a result.

Comments

Data type