HL7 message to PDF file

[Ariba Jones]

Has anyone setup an interface to receive MDM^T02 messages (or any message type) on a port and then send those messages out in a PDF file?  Is this even possible? I have been asked about the possibility of doing this.  I do not have any interfaces that currently do anything like this.

Any information about this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Ariba Jones

Topic

[Kevin Kinnell]

You mean they want the actual HL7 in a PDF file?  Weird.

You could send it to a file, where the file is a pipe to a PDF “printer”.

[Nick Stainback]

I don’t think that it is possible straight from the engine, I just setup a T02 into our host systsem, and without something to recieve and “parse” the message there is not a way to place it in a format that a user could read it,  that i know of, there may be some tcl you could write to do it but I’m not really sure if that would work.   😕

Unless the Raw message is what you are after in which case what Kevin said works great but i agree, Wierd…

[Ariba Jones]

I thought it was weird request also.

Now, I am being told that the file doesn’t have to be a PDF.  It can be any file type.  Can this be done as any file type?  I do have some interfaces where I receive an FRL (and that is the way my inbound thread is configured…as an FRL) and then put those out in a file on a shared drive.  I am just not sure if I can do the same with an HL7 MDM^T02 message.  Does anyone know?

Ariba

[Jim Kosloskey]

Ariba,

Were it me and if the source is a real time connection, I would see if the receiving system could pick up num-file type files. Then I would route the HL/7 messages in question to a FileSet protocol with a num file proc.

If the source is a Fileset/FTP connection, I would probably try to maintain the integrity of the file but still use a FileSet protocol.

Jim Kosloskey

email: jim.kosloskey@jim-kosloskey.com 29+ years Cloverleaf, 59 years IT - old fart.

[Ariba Jones]

Jim,

I don’t know many specifics of this yet.  I do know that the files will be received on Cloverleaf via tcp/ip connection.  The request is to then have those files put on a shared drive location for the persons needing to view these to look at. So, it sounds like my outbound thread will need to be some type of Fileset type.  I am thinking it can be Fileset-Local like my other interfaces that do this same thing.  The difference is that the other interfaces I have doing this have a FRL file coming in via tcp/ip connection and then I have a kornshell script that executes and puts that file on the shared drive.  I was wondering if I could do this same thing with the HL7 MDM^T02 messages.

Ariba

[Jim Kosloskey]

Ariba,

If you already have a working methodology doing something similar except the data is a fixed format, the same methodology should work for HL/7. Just make sure the messages are terminated properly.

After all, it’s just data.

Jim Kosloskey

email: jim.kosloskey@jim-kosloskey.com 29+ years Cloverleaf, 59 years IT - old fart.

[Ariba Jones]

Ok, Jim.  I will test this out and see if it works.  

Thanks for the info.

Ariba

[James Cobane]

Ariba,

We deal with many MDM^T02 transactions, and it is common to receive a base-64 endcoded .pdf file within the HL7 message.  That is, in OBX:5 the actual data is the pdf file, base-64 encoded.  We receive these types of transactions to upload documents into our EMR (which can accept the .pdf documents, de-code them,  and post them in the application).  I’m guessing that this is probably what you’ll be receiving once you get specifics from the vendor.  The .pdf file is normally produced on the sending application, base-64 encoded, then transmitted within the HL7 message.  I can send you some examples from our test environment if you like.  When you look at the actual transaction, it looks like your standard HL7 until you hit OBX:5, then you see a bunch of “garbly-gook” (technical term), which is the base-64 encoded .pdf.

Hope this helps.

Jim Cobane

Henry Ford Health

[Kevin Kinnell]

Shame on you Jim!  All well educated Dee-troit techno-geeks should know

that it’s spelled “gobbledy-gook.”  Tsk.

–kevin (I grew up in Wayne, but I don’t want your pity!) kinnell

[James Cobane]

Kevin,

You’re right!  My spell-check didn’t catch it!  😀

– Jim

[Ariba Jones]

Jim,

How about I hold you to that?  Once I get more information regarding this, I will post a reply to request your samples.

Thanks so much for that information.

Ariba Jones

[Author]

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