FHIR Fundamentals Course

Beginner-friendly course to master FHIR through hands-on projects. Build real applications with Epic, Cerner, and modern health data standards.

4 modules
42 lessons
3 hours 20 minutes
Fhir Fundamentals
Part 1

Introduction to FHIR

Begin here with an introduction to FHIR and FHIR resources. You will create your first Patient resource in this module, and understand the healthcare information interoperability space.

  1. Introduction

    Discover the key topics and objectives we will cover in this module to guide your learning and practical application.

    2:00
  2. What is FHIR?

    Explore the world of FHIR, its resources, standards, and how to use it for managing and exchanging healthcare data.

    5:00
  3. What are FHIR Resources?

    An introduction to FHIR resources, guiding you on using them to handle and share healthcare information efficiently.

    11:00
  4. Exercise: First FHIR Resource

    Step-by-step guide to creating a FHIR Patient Resource, covering data structure, required fields, and proper usage.

    1:00
  5. Solution: A Patient Resource

    Solution walkthrough for the previous exercise to create your first FHIR Patient Resource. Try it yourself first!

    3:00
  6. Understand Health Interoperability

    Understand the landscape of healthcare information interoperability, including standards, challenges, and best practices.

  7. [Extra] Interview: Grahame Grieve

    Hear valuable insights from Grahame Grieve, the founder of FHIR, about the standard, its goals, and healthcare impact.

    43:00
Part 2

FHIR Resources and Data Types

Resources are the building blocks of FHIR. In this module, you will learn about FHIR Resources, some important resources, and the Data Types they contain.

  1. Introduction

    What we will cover in this module.

    3:00
  2. FHIR Data Types

    Explore FHIR data types in detail, from primitive to complex, and learn how to use them effectively in healthcare data.

    15:00
  3. FHIR Resource Quick Guide

    Practical guide to FHIR resource, through key modules like administrative, clinical, and financial workflows.

    3:00
  4. Patient, Practitioner, Encounter, Organization

    Understand the Patient, Practitioner, Encounter and Organization resources and how they fit into the clinical workflow.

    7:00
  5. Observation

    Explore how the Observation resource can capture a wide range of data and how it fits into the clinical workflow.

    6:00
  6. Allergies and Family History

    Explore how the AllergyIntolerence and FamilyMemberHistory resources fit into the clinical workflow.

    4:00
  7. Observation vs Condition

    Differentiating FHIR Observation and Condition resources is often confusing, let's understand the differences.

    5:00
  8. Service Request, Lab Reports, Diagnosis

    The ServiceRequest resource can be used for ordering clinical tests, procedures, and capturing diagnostic results.

    6:00
  9. Medications

    The MedicationRequest resource is used for prescription, and MedicationAdministration tracks actual administration.

    2:00
  10. Financials

    Resources like CoverageEligibilityRequest, Claim, Preauthorization and PaymentNotice cover financial workflow, process patient coverage and payments.

    7:00
  11. Conclusion

    Wrap up the clinical case walkthrough by reviewing key steps, decisions, and insights for practical application.

    1:00
Part 3

RESTful FHIR

In this module we explore the basics of interacting with a FHIR server using HTTP methods like GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE.

  1. Introduction to FHIR REST

    In this module we will explore FHIR REST APIs, and using HTTP methods to interact with FHIR servers.

    5:00
  2. Create, Read, Update, Delete

    Learn how to effectively interact with a real FHIR server using Postman for testing, data retrieval, and API integration.

    6:00
  3. Exercise: POST Patient Resource

    Step-by-step guide to creating a FHIR Patient Resource, covering data fields, structure, and proper usage on a server.

    1:00
  4. Solution: POST Patient to Server

    Solution for the previous exercise to POST a FHIR Patient resource to a FHIR server. Try it yourself first!

  5. Referencing Other Resources

    Learn how references between FHIR resources work and how to manage linked data effectively in healthcare applications.

    3:00
  6. Searching FHIR Resources

    Learn how to efficiently perform search operations on a FHIR server using search parameters and modifiers effectively.

    5:00
  7. Exercise: Search for a Resource

    Learn how to efficiently search for a resource and properly handle results while managing errors in your application.

    1:00
  8. Solution: Search for Resource

    Carefully review the solution to searching for a FHIR Patient resource, then try it yourself to reinforce your skills.

  9. [Extra] FHIR in the Wild

    Examine how real FHIR servers behave: why 200/201 can hide invalid resources, how giant JSON bundles slow debugging, and how Vanya viewer helps.

    8:20
Part 4

Advanced REST

Learn advanced REST concepts in FHIR including Bundles, temporary identifiers, conditional create, versioning and more.

  1. Bulk Operations using Bundles

    Learn how to use the FHIR Bundle resource to perform bulk operations, manage multiple resources, and streamline workflows.

    5:00
  2. Referencing Resources in Transactions

    Learn how to POST referenced resources using a temporary ID, ensuring related FHIR resources link correctly within a single transaction and reduce round trips.

    5:00
  3. Conditional Create

    Explore the conditional PUT operation to either create a resource or updating an existing resource and linked resources based on their identifier.

    4:00
  4. Exercise: Create a transaction

    Learn step-by-step how to create a FHIR transaction, including patient and observation resources, in this hands-on practical exercise.

    00:30
  5. Solution: Create a Transaction

    Solution for the previous exercise to create a FHIR Bundle of type transaction. Try it yourself first!

  6. Search: AND, OR, modifiers, prefixes

    Understand advanced search on FHIR including using search modifiers, combining multiple search values etc.

    7:00
  7. Search by System and Value

    Learn how to efficiently search for FHIR resources by fields containing both system and value for precise data retrieval.

    3:00
  8. History and Versions

    FHIR servers track changes to resources, learn to view full version histories for resources or across the server.

    3:00
  9. Set up a Local FHIR Server

    Learn to run a local FHIR server using Docker with HAPI FHIR, letting you test and interact with patient data without relying on hosted servers.

    5:00
  10. Google Cloud FHIR Server

    Learn how to set up a fully managed FHIR server on Google Cloud Platform quickly for testing and healthcare applications.

    5:00
  11. AWS HealthLake FHIR Server

    Learn how to quickly set up a fully managed FHIR server on AWS HealthLake for testing, development, and healthcare data.

    3:00
  12. Azure FHIR API

    Step-by-step guide to configuring Azure Health Data and AI Services to host a FHIR R4 API for healthcare applications.

    6:00
  13. Comparing Cloud FHIR Servers

    Comparing major cloud FHIR server providers (Azure, Google, AWS) on capbilities and cost. Also discussing Smile CDR, Aidbox, Medplum.

    4:00
  14. Exercise: Synthetic Data

    In this exercise, explore how to create synthetic patient data and integrate it into our FHIR server for practical use.

    00:30
  15. Solution: Synthetic Data

    Review the solution to the previous exercise, then try it yourself to practice and strengthen your understanding.