Release 5

This page is part of the FHIR Specification (v5.0.0: R5 - STU). This is the current published version. For a full list of available versions, see the Directory of published versions . Page versions: R5 R4B R4 R3 R2

FHIR Infrastructure icon Work GroupMaturity Level: 3 Trial UseSecurity Category: Business Compartments: Device, Patient, Practitioner

Detailed Descriptions for the elements in the Group resource.

Group
Element IdGroup
Definition

Represents a defined collection of entities that may be discussed or acted upon collectively but which are not expected to act collectively, and are not formally or legally recognized; i.e. a collection of entities that isn't an Organization.

Short DisplayGroup of multiple entities
Cardinality0..*
TypeDomainResource
Summaryfalse
Comments

If both Group.characteristic and Group.member are present, then the members are the individuals who were found who met the characteristic. It's possible that there might be other candidate members who meet the characteristic and aren't (yet) in the list. All members SHALL have the listed characteristics.

Group.identifier
Element IdGroup.identifier
Definition

Business identifiers assigned to this participant by one of the applications involved. These identifiers remain constant as the resource is updated and propagates from server to server.

Short DisplayBusiness Identifier for this Group
NoteThis is a business identifier, not a resource identifier (see discussion)
Cardinality0..*
TypeIdentifier
Requirements

Allows identification of the group as it is known by various participating systems and in a way that remains consistent across servers.

Summarytrue
Comments

Note: This is a business identifier, not a resource identifier (see discussion). It is best practice for the identifier to only appear on a single resource instance, however business practices may occasionally dictate that multiple resource instances with the same identifier can exist - possibly even with different resource types.

Group.active
Element IdGroup.active
Definition

Indicates whether the record for the group is available for use or is merely being retained for historical purposes.

Short DisplayWhether this group's record is in active use
Cardinality0..1
Typeboolean
Is Modifiertrue (Reason: This element is labelled as a modifier because it is a status element that can indicate that a record should not be treated as valid)
Meaning if MissingThis resource is generally assumed to be active if no value is provided for the active element
Requirements

Need to be able to mark a group record as not to be used because it was created in error or is otherwise no longer available (e.g. a herd that no longer exists).

Summarytrue
Group.type
Element IdGroup.type
Definition

Identifies the broad classification of the kind of resources the group includes.

Short Displayperson | animal | practitioner | device | careteam | healthcareservice | location | organization | relatedperson | specimen
Cardinality1..1
Terminology BindingGroup Type (Required)
Typecode
Requirements

Identifies what type of resources the group is made up of.

Summarytrue
Comments

Group members SHALL be of the appropriate resource type (Patient for person or animal; or Practitioner, PractitionerRole, Device, CareTeam, HealthcareService, Location, Organization, RelatedPerson, or Specimen for the other types.), or a Group of the resources of the appropriate type.

Group.membership
Element IdGroup.membership
Definition

Basis for membership in the Group:

  • 'definitional': The Group.characteristics specified are both necessary and sufficient to determine membership. All entities that meet the criteria are considered to be members of the group, whether referenced by the group or not. If members are present, they are individuals that happen to be known as meeting the Group.characteristics. The list cannot be presumed to be complete.
  • 'enumerated': The Group.characteristics are necessary but not sufficient to determine membership. Membership is determined by being listed as one of the Group.member.
Short Displaydefinitional | enumerated
Cardinality1..1
Terminology BindingGroup Membership Basis (Required)
Typecode
Requirements

There are use-cases for groups that define specific collections of individuals, and other groups that define "types" of intended individuals. The requirements for both kinds of groups are similar, so we use a single resource, distinguished by this element.

Summarytrue
Group.code
Element IdGroup.code
Definition

Provides a specific type of resource the group includes; e.g. "cow", "syringe", etc.

Short DisplayKind of Group members
Cardinality0..1
Terminology BindingGroupKind:
TypeCodeableConcept
Summarytrue
Comments

This would generally be omitted for Person resources.

Group.name
Element IdGroup.name
Definition

A label assigned to the group for human identification and communication.

Short DisplayLabel for Group
Cardinality0..1
Typestring
Requirements

Used to identify the group in human communication.

Summarytrue
Group.description
Element IdGroup.description
Definition

Explanation of what the group represents and how it is intended to be used.

Short DisplayNatural language description of the group
Cardinality0..1
Typemarkdown
Summaryfalse
Group.quantity
Element IdGroup.quantity
Definition

A count of the number of resource instances that are part of the group.

Short DisplayNumber of members
Cardinality0..1
TypeunsignedInt
Requirements

Group size is a common defining characteristic.

Summarytrue
Comments

Note that the quantity may be less than the number of members if some of the members are not active.

Group.managingEntity
Element IdGroup.managingEntity
Definition

Entity responsible for defining and maintaining Group characteristics and/or registered members.

Short DisplayEntity that is the custodian of the Group's definition
Cardinality0..1
TypeReference(Organization | RelatedPerson | Practitioner | PractitionerRole)
Summarytrue
Comments

This does not strictly align with ownership of a herd or flock, but may suffice to represent that relationship in simple cases. More complex cases will require an extension.

Group.characteristic
Element IdGroup.characteristic
Definition

Identifies traits whose presence r absence is shared by members of the group.

Short DisplayInclude / Exclude group members by Trait
Cardinality0..*
Requirements

Needs to be a generic mechanism for identifying what individuals can be part of a group.

Summarytrue
Comments

All the identified characteristics must be true for an entity to a member of the group.

Group.characteristic.code
Element IdGroup.characteristic.code
Definition

A code that identifies the kind of trait being asserted.

Short DisplayKind of characteristic
Cardinality1..1
Terminology BindingGroupCharacteristicKind:
TypeCodeableConcept
Requirements

Need a formal way of identifying the characteristic being described.

Summarytrue
Group.characteristic.value[x]
Element IdGroup.characteristic.value[x]
Definition

The value of the trait that holds (or does not hold - see 'exclude') for members of the group.

Short DisplayValue held by characteristic
Cardinality1..1
Terminology BindingGroupCharacteristicValue:
TypeCodeableConcept|boolean|Quantity|Range|Reference
[x] NoteSee Choice of Datatypes for further information about how to use [x]
Requirements

The value of the characteristic is what determines group membership.

Summarytrue
Comments

For Range, it means members of the group have a value that falls somewhere within the specified range.

Group.characteristic.exclude
Element IdGroup.characteristic.exclude
Definition

If true, indicates the characteristic is one that is NOT held by members of the group.

Short DisplayGroup includes or excludes
Cardinality1..1
Typeboolean
Requirements

Sometimes group membership is determined by characteristics not possessed.

Summarytrue
Comments

This is labeled as "Is Modifier" because applications cannot wrongly include excluded members as included or vice versa.

Group.characteristic.period
Element IdGroup.characteristic.period
Definition

The period over which the characteristic is tested; e.g. the patient had an operation during the month of June.

Short DisplayPeriod over which characteristic is tested
Cardinality0..1
TypePeriod
Summaryfalse
Group.member
Element IdGroup.member
Definition

Identifies the resource instances that are members of the group.

Short DisplayWho or what is in group
Cardinality0..*
Requirements

Often the only thing of interest about a group is "who's in it".

Summaryfalse
Group.member.entity
Element IdGroup.member.entity
Definition

A reference to the entity that is a member of the group. Must be consistent with Group.type. If the entity is another group, then the type must be the same.

Short DisplayReference to the group member
Cardinality1..1
TypeReference(CareTeam | Device | Group | HealthcareService | Location | Organization | Patient | Practitioner | PractitionerRole | RelatedPerson | Specimen)
Summaryfalse
Group.member.period
Element IdGroup.member.period
Definition

The period that the member was in the group, if known.

Short DisplayPeriod member belonged to the group
Cardinality0..1
TypePeriod
Meaning if MissingThe member is in the group at this time
Requirements

Need to track who was in a group at a particular time.

Summaryfalse
Group.member.inactive
Element IdGroup.member.inactive
Definition

A flag to indicate that the member is no longer in the group, but previously may have been a member.

Short DisplayIf member is no longer in group
Cardinality0..1
Typeboolean
Meaning if MissingMembers are considered active unless explicitly specified otherwise
Requirements

Sometimes you don't know when someone stopped being in a group, but not when.

Summaryfalse