Does your product need to update patient details?
Updating patient details is an extra feature. If you use it, you must meet the additional technical conformance criteria outlined in this section.
Does your product reject an entire PDS response message due to invalid data items?
An entire PDS response message must not be rejected where individual items of data are invalid.
Does your product persist and use objects from the PDS with unpopulated optional elements?
Local systems must be able to persist and use objects from the PDS which contain unpopulated optional elements.
Does your product update a matched local record with PDS data?
The local system must be capable of updating any matched local record with PDS data.
Does your product store the Version ID locally?
Local systems must store the Version ID locally in order determine synchronisation behaviour.
Does your product appropriately handle rejections by implementing the required outcomes?
If the interactive user rejects an update to the key-fields, the local record must be:
Does your product enable the end user to confirm the match?
Where a matching record returned by the LPI or PDS in response to a trace is selected, a user must be prompted to confirm that the displayed record belongs to the patient.
Does your product allow de-coupled records to update PDS?
De-coupled records must not be used to update the PDS.
Does your product allow de-coupled records to be updated locally?
De-coupled records must be capable of being updated locally.
Does your product enable management of de-coupled records?
Local systems must provide tools to manage de-coupled records.
Does your product support selecting of data at the object level?
Selection of data from each source must be at the object level e.g. the whole 'home' address, not individual address lines.
Does your product support the display of all prefixes?
Local systems must be able to display any name prefix value returned by the PDS.
Does your product reset locally-held Version ID information for a superseded record?
The system must reset any locally-held Version ID information for the superseded record.
Does your product notify the Local Back Office if an invalid record is encountered?
Local systems must notify the Local Back Office that an invalid record has been encountered.
Does your product include the NHS number when notifying the Local Back Office of an invalid record?
The notification must contain the affected record NHS number.
Does your product support sensitive flag synchronisation?
Local Systems should continue to attempt record synchronisation with the PDS at subsequent significant events, so that it can be detected whether a sensitive flag has been removed from the record.
Does your product synchronise a locally stored patient before a PDS update?
Systems must synchronise a locally stored patient record prior to performing a PDS General Update.
Does your product support the rules for local systems with LPI?
If the local system has an LPI it must update the PDS whenever local patient demographics are amended, except if:
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the PDS is unavailable, at which point, the local system must indicate that the records are now not synchronised
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the only data amended is not held on the PDS e.g. ethnicity
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the only data amended is explicitly exempt from update on the PDS e.g. primary care information from secondary care
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the record is sensitive or invalid e.g. S flagged records or records identified by an invalid NHS number
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the local record is de-coupled from the PDS or in an unsynchronised state e.g. there is an erroneous death status set on the PDS
Does your product support the management of the Version ID?
The Version ID must be reset to 0 upon sending the PDS Update.
Does your product alter the use of name, address or telecom details when managing PDS objects?
When altering name, address or telecom objects, local systems must not change the 'system' or 'use' e.g. a 'mobile' must not be changed to 'home'. The prior object must be removed, and a new one added instead.
Does your product attempt to add PDS objects that already exist?
Local systems must not attempt to ‘add’ objects which already exist.
Does your product attempt to replace or remove PDS objects that do not exist?
Local systems must not attempt to ‘replace’ or ‘remove’ objects which do not exist.
Does your product support the rules for replacement?
Local systems must not attempt to remove any of the following objects without providing a replacement value:
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usual name
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gender
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date of birth
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date of death
Does your product support the minimum data set for update?
Local systems which retrieve from and update PDS must support the following minimum dataset:
Does your product have the required data set support?
Local systems which retrieve from and update PDS should support the following data items:
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one and only one current usual name and nickname
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date of death
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one and only one current temp, home and billing address
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one and only one current home telephone number
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one and only one current mobile telephone number
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language and interpreter required indicator
Does your product validate data before updating PDS?
Local systems must validate data prior to updating PDS.
Does your product validate dates before updating PDS?
When dates are added or updated on the PDS, they must be sent as valid, full dates in the required format.
Does your product validate against relevant vocabularies before updating PDS?
Any vocabulary data contained in an update must be validated against the appropriate vocabulary in the specifications.
Does your product support 'business effective from' dates where appropriate?
A ‘business effective from’ date must be provided where an object supports business effective dates.
Does your product remove objects from PDS where they are to be rendered no longer valid?
With the exception of the type 'home' address (Usual address), where an object is to be rendered no longer valid from the current moment (e.g. it is end-dated on the local system with an end date that is not in the future), and no replacement value is being provided, then it must be removed from PDS.
Does your product avoid adding 'business effective from' dates that are in the future?
When updating PDS, ‘business effective from’ dates must not be set in the future.
Does your product derive addresses from a PAF tool when updating PDS?
Local systems must be capable of deriving addresses from a PAF tool when performing updates.
Does your product support postcodes that conform to the PAF format?
The postcode must conform to the PAF format e.g. a single space character must separate the ‘outcode’ and ‘incode’.
Does your product support the manual population of addresses?
Where an address cannot be found in the PAF tool or a PAF tool is not supported, systems must enable the user to manually populate the address according to the prescribed format.
Does your product support the default postcode for 'no fixed abode' addresses?
For ‘no fixed abode’ addresses, the postcode field must contain the default postcode ‘ZZ99 3VZ’.
Does your product enable the updating of primary care information on the PDS?
Systems other than NHAIS, GP Practice and DSA must not update primary care information on the PDS.
Does your product enable the removal of primary care information on the PDS?
Systems other than NHAIS or DSA must not ‘remove’ primary care information from the PDS.
Does your product enable the updating of registered GP practice information on the PDS?
Primary care systems must not update registered GP practice information as part of GP registration functionality. This information must not be changed on the PDS for any other purpose.
Does your product enable free-text entry when updating primary care information on the PDS?
Where primary care data is added to the update request, the user interface must not allow free-text entry of coded data, but provide lookup functionality.
Does your product record informal death status for death notifications when updating PDS?
Where there is a legitimate business need to submit death notifications, local systems must be capable of recording (e.g. setting) informal death status on the PDS.
Does your product enable removal of a previously set death status when updating PDS?
Local systems must not attempt to un-decease the patient on the PDS, by ‘removing’ a death status once set.
Does your product enable changing death status when updating PDS?
Local systems must not update the death status recorded on PDS from a ‘2’ (formal) to a ‘1’ (informal).
Does your product support language definition where the interpreter required indicator is used?
If the interpreter required indicator is to be updated on PDS then a language defined in the language vocabulary must also be included in the update.
Does your product only support pharmacy codes that are Spine-compliant?
Local systems must only update the PDS with codes that are for Spine-compliant pharmacies.
Does your product reset the Version ID when required?
If an update fails as a result of a Version ID failure, the Version ID must be reset to force a manual synchronisation at the next significant event.
Does your product support the management of related persons?
If supporting related persons, local systems must support the update of related persons not identified by NHS number.
Does your product remove invalid NHS numbers for related persons when updating PDS?
When an invalid NHS number is detected for a related person record, local systems must remove that related person record and prompt the user to add a new related person record using demographic data.