Sharpen your informatics skills and explore issues affecting the public health informatics community with these resources.

Electronic Laboratory Reporting (ELR)

  • ELR TA Overview - This brief document provides an introduction to the Electronic Laboratory Reporting Technical Assistance program, and details the process for submitting a request for technical assistance for your public health agency.
  • Meaningful Use (MU) Federal Register - This final rule outlines Stage 2 of meaningful use, which will take effect in 2014.  For up-to-date information on MU incentives and on the development of Stage 3, visit the ONC website.
  • NIST ELR HL7 V.2.5.1 Validation Tool - Laboratories can use this tool to validate HL7 2.5.1 messages against Meaningful Use 2014 criteria.

Electronic Laboratory Surveillance Message (ELSM)

  • ELSM Overview - This brief document provides an introduction to the projects that utilize the Electronic Laboratory Surveillance Message (ELSM), including the Public Health Laboratory Interoperability Project (PHLIP) and the Vaccine-Preventable Diseases (VPD) Project.
  • PHLIP Overview - This brief document provides an introduction to the Public Health Laboratory Interoperability Project (PHLIP); it outlines PHLIP's objectives and use cases.
  • Flu Test Encoding Guideline February 2014.xls (Click "Save" when prompted) - This document provides laboratories with guidelines for how to encode influenza tests when sending ELSM.
  • Flu ELSM Deprecated codes.xls (Click "Save" when prompted) - These codes have been deprecated and superseded by other codes through the Change Control Process.  Laboratories should consult the HL7 Influenza Message Guide for more guidance on replacing deprecated codes.
  • HL7 v231 APHL Influenza Messaging Guide ORU v1.0.2.doc (Click "Save" when prompted) - This document describes the APHL/CDC implementation of HL7 messages for influenza testing in conformance with HL7 message standards.

APHL Informatics Messaging Services (AIMS)

  • AIMS Hub - In response to demands form its partners, APHL has deployed an environment that hosts a variety of secure messaging services.  The APHL Informatics Messaging Services (AIMS) Hub is a secure, cloud based environment that accelerates the implementation of public health messaging solutions by providing shared services to aid in the transport, validation , translation and routing of electronic data.

CDC Messaging and Vocabulary Resources

  • PHIN Messaging System - CDC's home page for PHINMS offers installation instructions and support.
  • PHIN Message Quality Framework - The MQF validates the structure and content of an HL7 message in EDI text format.
  • PHIN VADS Value Sets - This repository contains value sets for PHLIP ELSM value sets, as well as ELR HL7 v.2.5.1 value sets and many other message guides.
  • PHIN VADS RCMT - The Reportable Condition Mapping Table (RCMT) contains lists of LOINCs and SNOMED codes for reportable conditions to aid in the mapping of local to standard codes.

HL7 Messaging Resources

  • HL7 Website - Visit the HL7 website for sources for standards, working groups, classes and more.
  • 7Edit - The HL7 message validator application.
  • HL7 Table 396 - A vocabulary table of coding systems.
  • HL7 OID Registry - Online HL7 Object Identifier (OID) registry that allows users to register, search for, and edit OIDs.

Vocabulary Resources

  • LOINC Website - The Logical Observation Identifiers Names and Codes (LOINC) website includes database and mapping tools.
  • National Library of Medicine (NLM) Newborn Screening Terminology Guide - standard codes and terminology for newborn tests, presented in a series of tables that can be viewed online or downloaded.
  • SNOMED Website - Systematized Nomenclature of Medical - Clinical Terms.
  • VTSL SNOMED CT Core Browser - Virginia Tech hosts a web-based SNOMED CT browser that includes international core content and the veterinary extension.
  • UMLS Terminology Services - The National Institutes of Health hosts a web-based browser to search the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) which includes several medicine related terminologies. For SNOMED CT the UMLS offers a US Edition that includes the US extension terms and the international core concepts, as well as commonly used subsets like problem lists and route of administration.