TECHNICAL DOCUMENTS AND REFERENCES

Health Level 7 (HL7) Data

**Note: As of September 2015, the HL7 daily data feeds in the EpiData Center also include the EDIPN/DODID variable. At this time, the technical documents below do not reflect the change. **
List of SOPs for Projects/Tasks Using HL7 Data in the EDC: Document contains a list of active and pending SOP that utilize in full or in part HL7 data (chemistry, microbiology, pathology, and/or pharmacy) for completion of projects/tasks. This is a live document and edits will be provided as SOPs are added or edited. If you have any questions on existing projects/tasks that we may be able to support you on, please contact us.

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Poitras B, Neumann C, Rossi S, Luse T (2021).  Description of the MHS Health Level 7 Pharmacy Laboratory Database for Public Health Surveillance.  Portsmouth: Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center.
https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/AD1136825.pdf
Abstract:  The EpiData Center (EDC) at the Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center evaluated the Composite Health Care System (CHCS) Health Level 7-formatted (HL7) data source for its usefulness in health surveillance activities. This technical document explains the creation of prescription records, describes the pathway of data from healthcare provider to the EDC,  provides a detailed descriptions of all variables within the databases, and assesses the databases’ strengths and limitations. Given an understanding of the strengths and limitations of the data, HL7-formatted pharmacy data have proven to be a valuable source of health information for surveillance purposes. The data can be used for case identification when disease-specific treatment is available, can be matched with other data sources to enhance disease surveillance, or used to assess clinical practice guideline adherence for known cases.  Furthermore, data are received in a timely fashion, allowing for near-real-time surveillance of diseases.  

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Riegodedios, A., Kubiak, G., & Hines, T. (2007). Use of Clinical Laboratory Results for Military Medical Surveillance: the Health Level 7 Experience. Retrieved from
http://faculty.washington.edu/lober/www.isdsjournal.org/htdocs/articles/800.pdf
Background: Medical surveillance in the military can be improved through the use of clinical laboratory results collected within the Military Health System (MHS). This presentation describes an effort to establish Electronic Laboratory Reporting (ELR) in the military using existing HL7 messages. HL7 data is being evaluated for data integrity, completeness, reliability and validity. In addition, initial efforts to evaluate, standardize, and use this data to support investigations of interest over the past year are presented.

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Nowak, G. (2014). Description of the MHS Health Level 7 Anatomic Pathology for Public Health. Portsmouth: Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center.
http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a604240.pdf
Abstract:The EpiData Center Department (EDC) at the Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center (NMCPHC) evaluated the Health Level 7 (HL7) data source for its usefulness in health surveillance activities. This technical document provides a history of the HL7 anatomic pathology database and its contents, explains the creation of pathology records, describes the pathway of data from healthcare provider to the EDC, provides a detailed descriptions of all variables within the database, and assesses the databases strengths and limitations. Given an understanding of the strengths and limitations of the data, HL7 pathology data have proven to be a valuable source of health Information for surveillance purposes. The data allow the creation of a timeline of events corresponding to a specific disease occurrence. Furthermore, data are received in a timely fashion, allowing for near-real-time surveillance of diseases.

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Nowak, G. (2014). Description of the MHS Health Level 7 Radiology for Public Health . Portsmouth: Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center.
http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a596739.pdf
Abstract: The EpiData Center Department (EDC) at the Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center (NMCPHC) evaluated the Health Level 7 (HL7) data source for its usefulness in health surveillance activities. This technical document provides a history of the HL7 radiology database and its contents, explains the creation of radiology records, describes the pathway of data from healthcare provider to the EDC, provides a detailed descriptions of all variables within the database, and assesses the database’s strengths and limitations. Given an understanding of the strengths and limitations of the data, HL7 radiology data have proven to be a valuable source of health information for surveillance purposes. The data allow the creation of a timeline of events corresponding to a specific disease occurrence. Furthermore, data are received in a timely fashion, allowing for near-real-time surveillance of diseases.

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Poitras B, Spencer J, Creppage K (2019). Description of the MHS Health Level 7 Chemistry Laboratory Database for Public Health Surveillance. Portsmouth: Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center. Abstract: The EpiData Center (EDC) at the Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center (NMCPHC) evaluated the Health Level 7 (HL7) formatted chemistry data source for its usefulness in health surveillance activities. This technical document provides a history of the HL7 chemistry database and its contents, explains the creation of chemistry/serology records, describes the pathway of data from healthcare provider to the EDC, provides detailed descriptions of all variables within the database, and assesses the databases strengths and limitations. Given an understanding of the strengths and limitations of the data, HL7 chemistry laboratory data have proven to be a valuable source of health information for surveillance purposes. The data allow the creation of a timeline of events corresponding to a specific disease occurrence. Furthermore, data are received in a timely fashion, allowing for near real-time surveillance of diseases.

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