HL7 New Zealand

HL7® FHIR® NZ Base Implementation Guide – Ballot Invitation

The  HL7 New Zealand FHIR Implementation Work Group invites you to participate in a ballot on the first version of the HL7® FHIR® New Zealand Base Implementation Guide. This FHIR R4 Resource contains the base FHIR implementation rules (notably extensions, identifiers, and terminologies) for New Zealand. It is an ‘abstract’ artefact from which other FHIR Implementation Guides in this territory may be derived. It is intended to be a ‘living’ artefact that will be enhanced and maintained, based on feedback and usage experience from the FHIR Implementation Community mainly, but not restricted, to within New Zealand.

What is an HL7 Ballot?

Balloting is the mechanism used by HL7 to allow the wider community to make comments on HL7 Standards and Implementation Guides, and for those comments to be reviewed by the authors, making updates as required. It is a mechanism to ensure fitness for purpose and broad consensus, via the following process…

• There is a specific period during which comments are solicited (the ‘Ballot Period’) which is from Monday 13^thSeptember 2021 to Thursday 30^th September for this ballot.
• A copy of the balloted artefact is made that will remain unchanged over the Ballot Period. This is the copy against which participants make comments.
• Anyone participant can make a Ballot Comment, simply by adding a GitHub Issue (instructions below) to the repository where the Implementation Guide is stored.
• All comments are reviewed by the Authors in an open Work Group meeting. Each comment will have an outcome (a ‘Disposition’) which may or may not result in changes to the Implementation Guide, after which the issue is closed. The outcome is recorded as a comment against the issue, including any rationale for the outcome, which anyone can view.
• Anyone can attend the review meetings (and are encouraged to do so), but only current HL7 New Zealand (HL7NZ) members can vote on the Disposition.

Where is the Implementation Guide?

The Ballot Version of the Implementation Guide (‘NZ-Base’) is located here.  In this first version, NZ-Base is a primarily a collection of extensions, so click the ‘extensions’ tab to view a list of these extensions. Clicking on the extension name in the first column will load the detailed description of the extension definition. This is generated by the standard HL7 FHIR build process and has the same format as the core FHIR specification.

How to make Ballot Comments

Comments (Issues) are recorded against the source of the Implementation Guide, which is a GitHub Repository located here. Issues are on the Second Tab of the Repository.

• Firstly, you will require a GitHub Account. If you don’t already have one, then go to GitHub, and click the ‘Sign up’ link to the upper right and follow the instructions from there.
• Next, browse to the Issues Page of the HL7NZ Base Repository 
• To the right (above the current list of issues) is a green button labelled ‘New Issue’. Click that, and the new issue dialog will appear. 
• Each issue has a title and a description…
• Enter a meaningful title for the issue. For example, “The description of ‘date of death’ is unclear, or ‘there is a typo in the description of ‘additional authorisation’.
• In the description field enter the remaining details. Please include the URL of the extension definition page that you are commenting on. The contents will depend on the nature of the comment – if you are commenting on text, include the suggested text and where it applies.
• There are also labels you can apply if you so wish, but these are not mandatory.
• You can also elect to set up a Notification, so you are alerted to any activity on your issue. Details here
• Examples of comments…
• Suggested text to make the meaning of an Extension Definition clearer
• A comment about the contents of an extension – for example additional elements that may be useful
• A comment about the datatype of an extension – is there a better one that should be used?
• A comment about the terminology used to define the contents of a coded element.
• Push back against the extension itself – should it even be included? Is there an existing one that could be used instead, or is there already a core element on the resource?

Please note that comments can only be made against the current contents of the Implementation Guide. Suggestions for additional content, such as extensions or profiles, should be sent directly to the Work Group itself admin@hl7.org.nz.

What happens to Ballot Comments after Submission?

Anyone can make a comment against your Issue (that’s why notifications may be helpful) but only the HL7NZ Work Group can determine what happens to it (the ‘Disposition’ of the Comment). This Group meets weekly (Friday at 12 noon via ZOOM) and will consider open comments. Anyone is welcome to attend and participate in the discussion, but only HL7NZ members can vote on the Disposition. Send an Email  if you require our contact details. We can’t guarantee to discuss any specific issue on a particular date as this will depend on the number and complexity of comments.

This is an open, community-based, review, process with complete transparency of the deliberations and the outcome. Anyone can create issues or make comments against existing ones. However, only HL7 NZ members can participate in the Disposition Vote and once made, that decision is final.

If you have any questions about this process, please contact us here.

HL7 New Zealand FHIR Implementation Work Group