org.hl7.rim

Interface Entity

public interface Entity extends RimObject, InfrastructureRoot

Interface for RIM class Entity.

A physical thing, group of physical things or an organization capable of participating in Acts, while in a role.

Discussion: An entity is a physical object that has, had or will have existence. The only exception to this is Organization, which while not having a physical presence, fulfills the other characteristics of an Entity. The Entity hierarchy encompasses living subjects (including human beings), organizations, material, and places and their specializations. It does not indicate the roles played, or acts that these entities participate in.

Constraints: It does not include events/acts/actions, or the roles that things can play (e.g. patient, provider).

Method Summary
voidaddLanguageCommunication(LanguageCommunication value)
Adds an association 'languageCommunication' to RIM class LanguageCommunication.
voidaddPlayedRole(Role value)
Adds an association 'playedRole' to RIM class Role.
voidaddScopedRole(Role value)
Adds an association 'scopedRole' to RIM class Role.
CSgetClassCode()
Gets attribute classCode of type CS and cardinality 1..1.
CEgetCode()
Gets attribute code of type CE and cardinality 0..1.
EDgetDesc()
Gets attribute desc of type ED and cardinality 0..1.
CSgetDeterminerCode()
Gets attribute determinerCode of type CS and cardinality 1..1.
IVL<TS>getExistenceTime()
Gets attribute existenceTime of type IVL and cardinality 0..1.
CEgetHandlingCode()
Gets attribute handlingCode of type CE and cardinality 0..1.
SET<II>getId()
Gets attribute id of type SET and cardinality 0..*.
AssociationSet<LanguageCommunication>getLanguageCommunication()
Gets association 'languageCommunication' to RIM classes LanguageCommunication with cardinality (0..*).
BAG<EN>getName()
Gets attribute name of type BAG and cardinality 0..*.
AssociationSet<Role>getPlayedRole()
Gets association 'playedRole' to RIM classes Role with cardinality (0..*).
SET<PQ>getQuantity()
Gets attribute quantity of type SET and cardinality 0..*.
CEgetRiskCode()
Gets attribute riskCode of type CE and cardinality 0..1.
AssociationSet<Role>getScopedRole()
Gets association 'scopedRole' to RIM classes Role with cardinality (0..*).
SET<CS>getStatusCode()
Gets attribute statusCode of type SET and cardinality 0..*.
BAG<TEL>getTelecom()
Gets attribute telecom of type BAG and cardinality 0..*.
voidsetClassCode(CS value)
Sets attribute classCode of type CS and cardinality 1..1.
voidsetCode(CE value)
Sets attribute code of type CE and cardinality 0..1.
voidsetDesc(ED value)
Sets attribute desc of type ED and cardinality 0..1.
voidsetDeterminerCode(CS value)
Sets attribute determinerCode of type CS and cardinality 1..1.
voidsetExistenceTime(IVL<TS> value)
Sets attribute existenceTime of type IVL and cardinality 0..1.
voidsetHandlingCode(CE value)
Sets attribute handlingCode of type CE and cardinality 0..1.
voidsetId(SET<II> value)
Sets attribute id of type SET and cardinality 0..*.
voidsetLanguageCommunication(AssociationSet<LanguageCommunication> value)
Sets associations 'languageCommunication' to RIM classes LanguageCommunication with cardinality (0..*).
voidsetName(BAG<EN> value)
Sets attribute name of type BAG and cardinality 0..*.
voidsetPlayedRole(AssociationSet<Role> value)
Sets associations 'playedRole' to RIM classes Role with cardinality (0..*).
voidsetQuantity(SET<PQ> value)
Sets attribute quantity of type SET and cardinality 0..*.
voidsetRiskCode(CE value)
Sets attribute riskCode of type CE and cardinality 0..1.
voidsetScopedRole(AssociationSet<Role> value)
Sets associations 'scopedRole' to RIM classes Role with cardinality (0..*).
voidsetStatusCode(SET<CS> value)
Sets attribute statusCode of type SET and cardinality 0..*.
voidsetTelecom(BAG<TEL> value)
Sets attribute telecom of type BAG and cardinality 0..*.

Method Detail

addLanguageCommunication

public void addLanguageCommunication(LanguageCommunication value)
Adds an association 'languageCommunication' to RIM class LanguageCommunication.

Parameters: value the added association value

addPlayedRole

public void addPlayedRole(Role value)
Adds an association 'playedRole' to RIM class Role.

The following constraint applies to this association:

Invariant (Role x) { not(x.player.equals(null)) or not(x.scoper.equals(null)) }

Parameters: value the added association value

addScopedRole

public void addScopedRole(Role value)
Adds an association 'scopedRole' to RIM class Role.

The following constraint applies to this association:

Invariant (Role x) { not(x.player.equals(null)) or not(x.scoper.equals(null)) }

Parameters: value the added association value

getClassCode

public CS getClassCode()
Gets attribute classCode of type CS and cardinality 1..1.

An HL7 defined value representing the class or category that the Entity instance represents.

Examples: Person, Animal, Chemical Substance, Group, Organization

Rationale: Due to the extremely large number of potential values for a code set representing all physical things in the universe, the class code indicates both the subtype branch of the Entity hierarchy used as well as a high level classifier to represent the instance of Entity. This can be used to constrain the eligible value domains for the Entity.code attribute.

Returns: the attribute value

getCode

public CE getCode()
Gets attribute code of type CE and cardinality 0..1.

A value representing the specific kind of Entity the instance represents.

Examples: A medical building, a Doberman Pinscher, a blood collection tube, a tissue biopsy.

Rationale: For each Entity, the value for this attribute is drawn from one of several coding systems depending on the Entity.classCode, such as living subjects (animal and plant taxonomies), chemical substance (e.g., IUPAC code), organizations, insurance company, government agency, hospital, park, lake, syringe, etc. It is possible that Entity.code may be so fine grained that it represents a single instance. An example is the CDC vaccine manufacturer code, modeled as a concept vocabulary, when in fact each concept refers to a single instance.

Returns: the attribute value

getDesc

public ED getDesc()
Gets attribute desc of type ED and cardinality 0..1.

A textual or multimedia depiction of the Entity.

Discussion: The content of the description is not considered part of the functional information communicated between systems. Descriptions are meant to be shown to interested human individuals. All information relevant for automated functions must be communicated using the proper attributes and associated objects.

Rationale: Names and descriptions of entities are typically more meaningful to human viewers than numeric, mnemonic or abbreviated code values. The description allows for additional context about the entity to be conveyed to human viewers without impacting the functional components of the message.

Returns: the attribute value

getDeterminerCode

public CS getDeterminerCode()
Gets attribute determinerCode of type CS and cardinality 1..1.

An HL7 defined value representing whether the Entity represents a kind-of or a specific instance.

Examples: 1 human being (an instance), 3 syringes (quantified kind) or the population of Indianapolis (kind of group)

Rationale: An Entity may at times represent information concerning a specific instance (the most common), a quantifiable group with common characteristics or a general type of Entity. This code distinguishes these different representations.

Returns: the attribute value

getExistenceTime

public IVL<TS> getExistenceTime()
Gets attribute existenceTime of type IVL and cardinality 0..1.

An interval of time specifying the period in which the Entity physically existed.

Examples: Birthdate/Deathdate, ManufactureDate/DisposalDate

Constraints: This period may represent past, present or future time periods.

Rationale: Physical entities have specified periods in which they exist. Human beings are born, live their lives and die. Equipment is manufactured, placed in service, retired and salvaged. The relevance of this attribute is in planning, availability and retrospective analysis.

Returns: the attribute value

getHandlingCode

public CE getHandlingCode()
Gets attribute handlingCode of type CE and cardinality 0..1.

A value representing special handling requirements for the Entity.

Examples: Keep at room temperature; Keep frozen below 0 C; Keep in a dry environment; Keep upright, do not turn upside down.

Rationale: This attribute is used to describe special handling required by the Entity to avoid damage to it or other entities.

Returns: the attribute value

getId

public SET<II> getId()
Gets attribute id of type SET and cardinality 0..*.

A unique identifier for the Entity.

Rationale: Successful communication only requires that an entity have a single identifier assigned to it. However, it is recognized that as different systems maintain different databases, there may be different instance identifiers assigned by different systems. Note that an instance identifier is a pure identifier and not a classifier. For Material, serial numbers assigned by specific manufacturers, catalog numbers of specific distributors, or inventory numbers issued by owners, may also be represented by the Role.id, which allows a more clear expression of the fact that such a code is assigned by a specific party associated with that material.

Returns: the attribute value

getLanguageCommunication

public AssociationSet<LanguageCommunication> getLanguageCommunication()
Gets association 'languageCommunication' to RIM classes LanguageCommunication with cardinality (0..*).

Returns: the references to the linked classes

getName

public BAG<EN> getName()
Gets attribute name of type BAG and cardinality 0..*.

A non-unique textual identifier or moniker for the Entity.

Examples: Proper names, nicknames, legal names of persons, places or things.

Rationale: Most entities have a commonly used name that can be used to differentiate them from other Entities, but does not provide a unique identifier.

Returns: the attribute value

getPlayedRole

public AssociationSet<Role> getPlayedRole()
Gets association 'playedRole' to RIM classes Role with cardinality (0..*).

The following constraint applies to this association:

Invariant (Role x) { not(x.player.equals(null)) or not(x.scoper.equals(null)) }

Returns: the references to the linked classes

getQuantity

public SET<PQ> getQuantity()
Gets attribute quantity of type SET and cardinality 0..*.

The number or quantity of the Entity, with appropriate units, congruent with the value of Entity.determinerCode.

Examples: With undetermined kinds, the quantity is but a reference quantity for the specification of the proportion of ingredients or components (e.g. through a has-part, has-ingredient, or has-content Role). For example, a kind of group with 60% females is Person(quantity = 100) has-part Person(quantity = 60; sex = female). Amoxicillin 500 mg per tablet is Material(Tablet, quantity = 1) has-ingredient Material(Amoxicillin, quantity = 500 mg). Glucose 5% (D5W) is Material(D5W, quantity = 1 kg) has-ingredient Material(Glucose, quantity = 50 g).

Material-specific quantity relations are expressed using the fact that the data type of this attribute is a set of physical quantity (SET). If more than one quantity value are specified in this set, each element in this set is considered to specify the same amount of the material. For example, for one liter of water one could use the set 1 L, 1 kg, 55.56 mol to specify the volume, mass, and amount of substance for the same amount of water, this is equivalent with specifying the mass density (volumic mass 1 kg/L) and the molar mass (18 g/mol). For Glucose one could specify 180 g, 1 mol according to the molar mass (180 g/mol).

Discussion: When the Entity instance is a portion of a substance, the quantity specifies the amount of that substance comprised by that portion. For an undetermined substance (kind) the quantity serves two purposes at the same time: (a) it provides a means of relations between quantities specific for that substance, and (b) it is a reference quantity for the specification of ingredients or components. In all cases, the quantity is an extensive "amount" kind of quantity (e.g., number, length, volume, mass, surface area, energy, etc.). Note that most relative or fractional quantities are not amounts, in particular, mass fraction, substance concentration, mass ratios, percentages, etc. are not extensive quantities and are prohibited values for this attribute.

Constraints: For Entities with determinerCode = INSTANCE, the quantity is 1. For an Entity with determinerCode = QUANTIFIED_KIND, the quantity is the number of individual members in the group; for an Entity with a determinerCode = KIND, the value is undetermined.

Returns: the attribute value

getRiskCode

public CE getRiskCode()
Gets attribute riskCode of type CE and cardinality 0..1.

A value representing the type of hazard or threat associated with the Entity.

Examples: Petrochemical or organic chemicals are highly flammable agents that pose an increased risk of fire under certain conditions. Entities with either natural or introduced radioactive character pose a risk to those handling them. Entities comprising specimens from diseased individuals pose an increased risk of infection to those handling them. Persons or animals of irascible temperament may prove to be a risk to healthcare personnel.

Rationale: Some entities have characteristics that pose potential increased risk of injury or damage to other Entities. This attribute identifies the type of risk without specifying the level of risk.

Returns: the attribute value

getScopedRole

public AssociationSet<Role> getScopedRole()
Gets association 'scopedRole' to RIM classes Role with cardinality (0..*).

The following constraint applies to this association:

Invariant (Role x) { not(x.player.equals(null)) or not(x.scoper.equals(null)) }

Returns: the references to the linked classes

getStatusCode

public SET<CS> getStatusCode()
Gets attribute statusCode of type SET and cardinality 0..*.

A value representing whether the information associated with the Entity is currently active or inactive for the purpose of participation in acts.

Returns: the attribute value

getTelecom

public BAG<TEL> getTelecom()
Gets attribute telecom of type BAG and cardinality 0..*.

A telecommunication address for the Entity.

Returns: the attribute value

setClassCode

public void setClassCode(CS value)
Sets attribute classCode of type CS and cardinality 1..1.

An HL7 defined value representing the class or category that the Entity instance represents.

Examples: Person, Animal, Chemical Substance, Group, Organization

Rationale: Due to the extremely large number of potential values for a code set representing all physical things in the universe, the class code indicates both the subtype branch of the Entity hierarchy used as well as a high level classifier to represent the instance of Entity. This can be used to constrain the eligible value domains for the Entity.code attribute.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setCode

public void setCode(CE value)
Sets attribute code of type CE and cardinality 0..1.

A value representing the specific kind of Entity the instance represents.

Examples: A medical building, a Doberman Pinscher, a blood collection tube, a tissue biopsy.

Rationale: For each Entity, the value for this attribute is drawn from one of several coding systems depending on the Entity.classCode, such as living subjects (animal and plant taxonomies), chemical substance (e.g., IUPAC code), organizations, insurance company, government agency, hospital, park, lake, syringe, etc. It is possible that Entity.code may be so fine grained that it represents a single instance. An example is the CDC vaccine manufacturer code, modeled as a concept vocabulary, when in fact each concept refers to a single instance.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setDesc

public void setDesc(ED value)
Sets attribute desc of type ED and cardinality 0..1.

A textual or multimedia depiction of the Entity.

Discussion: The content of the description is not considered part of the functional information communicated between systems. Descriptions are meant to be shown to interested human individuals. All information relevant for automated functions must be communicated using the proper attributes and associated objects.

Rationale: Names and descriptions of entities are typically more meaningful to human viewers than numeric, mnemonic or abbreviated code values. The description allows for additional context about the entity to be conveyed to human viewers without impacting the functional components of the message.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setDeterminerCode

public void setDeterminerCode(CS value)
Sets attribute determinerCode of type CS and cardinality 1..1.

An HL7 defined value representing whether the Entity represents a kind-of or a specific instance.

Examples: 1 human being (an instance), 3 syringes (quantified kind) or the population of Indianapolis (kind of group)

Rationale: An Entity may at times represent information concerning a specific instance (the most common), a quantifiable group with common characteristics or a general type of Entity. This code distinguishes these different representations.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setExistenceTime

public void setExistenceTime(IVL<TS> value)
Sets attribute existenceTime of type IVL and cardinality 0..1.

An interval of time specifying the period in which the Entity physically existed.

Examples: Birthdate/Deathdate, ManufactureDate/DisposalDate

Constraints: This period may represent past, present or future time periods.

Rationale: Physical entities have specified periods in which they exist. Human beings are born, live their lives and die. Equipment is manufactured, placed in service, retired and salvaged. The relevance of this attribute is in planning, availability and retrospective analysis.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setHandlingCode

public void setHandlingCode(CE value)
Sets attribute handlingCode of type CE and cardinality 0..1.

A value representing special handling requirements for the Entity.

Examples: Keep at room temperature; Keep frozen below 0 C; Keep in a dry environment; Keep upright, do not turn upside down.

Rationale: This attribute is used to describe special handling required by the Entity to avoid damage to it or other entities.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setId

public void setId(SET<II> value)
Sets attribute id of type SET and cardinality 0..*.

A unique identifier for the Entity.

Rationale: Successful communication only requires that an entity have a single identifier assigned to it. However, it is recognized that as different systems maintain different databases, there may be different instance identifiers assigned by different systems. Note that an instance identifier is a pure identifier and not a classifier. For Material, serial numbers assigned by specific manufacturers, catalog numbers of specific distributors, or inventory numbers issued by owners, may also be represented by the Role.id, which allows a more clear expression of the fact that such a code is assigned by a specific party associated with that material.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setLanguageCommunication

public void setLanguageCommunication(AssociationSet<LanguageCommunication> value)
Sets associations 'languageCommunication' to RIM classes LanguageCommunication with cardinality (0..*).

Parameters: value the new association values

setName

public void setName(BAG<EN> value)
Sets attribute name of type BAG and cardinality 0..*.

A non-unique textual identifier or moniker for the Entity.

Examples: Proper names, nicknames, legal names of persons, places or things.

Rationale: Most entities have a commonly used name that can be used to differentiate them from other Entities, but does not provide a unique identifier.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setPlayedRole

public void setPlayedRole(AssociationSet<Role> value)
Sets associations 'playedRole' to RIM classes Role with cardinality (0..*).

The following constraint applies to this association:

Invariant (Role x) { not(x.player.equals(null)) or not(x.scoper.equals(null)) }

Parameters: value the new association values

setQuantity

public void setQuantity(SET<PQ> value)
Sets attribute quantity of type SET and cardinality 0..*.

The number or quantity of the Entity, with appropriate units, congruent with the value of Entity.determinerCode.

Examples: With undetermined kinds, the quantity is but a reference quantity for the specification of the proportion of ingredients or components (e.g. through a has-part, has-ingredient, or has-content Role). For example, a kind of group with 60% females is Person(quantity = 100) has-part Person(quantity = 60; sex = female). Amoxicillin 500 mg per tablet is Material(Tablet, quantity = 1) has-ingredient Material(Amoxicillin, quantity = 500 mg). Glucose 5% (D5W) is Material(D5W, quantity = 1 kg) has-ingredient Material(Glucose, quantity = 50 g).

Material-specific quantity relations are expressed using the fact that the data type of this attribute is a set of physical quantity (SET). If more than one quantity value are specified in this set, each element in this set is considered to specify the same amount of the material. For example, for one liter of water one could use the set 1 L, 1 kg, 55.56 mol to specify the volume, mass, and amount of substance for the same amount of water, this is equivalent with specifying the mass density (volumic mass 1 kg/L) and the molar mass (18 g/mol). For Glucose one could specify 180 g, 1 mol according to the molar mass (180 g/mol).

Discussion: When the Entity instance is a portion of a substance, the quantity specifies the amount of that substance comprised by that portion. For an undetermined substance (kind) the quantity serves two purposes at the same time: (a) it provides a means of relations between quantities specific for that substance, and (b) it is a reference quantity for the specification of ingredients or components. In all cases, the quantity is an extensive "amount" kind of quantity (e.g., number, length, volume, mass, surface area, energy, etc.). Note that most relative or fractional quantities are not amounts, in particular, mass fraction, substance concentration, mass ratios, percentages, etc. are not extensive quantities and are prohibited values for this attribute.

Constraints: For Entities with determinerCode = INSTANCE, the quantity is 1. For an Entity with determinerCode = QUANTIFIED_KIND, the quantity is the number of individual members in the group; for an Entity with a determinerCode = KIND, the value is undetermined.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setRiskCode

public void setRiskCode(CE value)
Sets attribute riskCode of type CE and cardinality 0..1.

A value representing the type of hazard or threat associated with the Entity.

Examples: Petrochemical or organic chemicals are highly flammable agents that pose an increased risk of fire under certain conditions. Entities with either natural or introduced radioactive character pose a risk to those handling them. Entities comprising specimens from diseased individuals pose an increased risk of infection to those handling them. Persons or animals of irascible temperament may prove to be a risk to healthcare personnel.

Rationale: Some entities have characteristics that pose potential increased risk of injury or damage to other Entities. This attribute identifies the type of risk without specifying the level of risk.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setScopedRole

public void setScopedRole(AssociationSet<Role> value)
Sets associations 'scopedRole' to RIM classes Role with cardinality (0..*).

The following constraint applies to this association:

Invariant (Role x) { not(x.player.equals(null)) or not(x.scoper.equals(null)) }

Parameters: value the new association values

setStatusCode

public void setStatusCode(SET<CS> value)
Sets attribute statusCode of type SET and cardinality 0..*.

A value representing whether the information associated with the Entity is currently active or inactive for the purpose of participation in acts.

Parameters: value the new attribute value

setTelecom

public void setTelecom(BAG<TEL> value)
Sets attribute telecom of type BAG and cardinality 0..*.

A telecommunication address for the Entity.

Parameters: value the new attribute value