Health Standards

Healthcare & Technology Resources

  • Blog
  • Podcasts
  • #HITsm Chat
  • About
  • Authors

What Are Z Segments?

October 5, 2006 By Health Standards 9 Comments

HL7 terms to better understand what is HL7. Z segments contain clinical or patient data that the HL7 Standard may not have defined in other areas. Essentially, it is the “catch all” for data that does not fit into the HL7 Standard message definitions. Z segments can be inserted in any message at any time, and Z segments can carry any data you want. In HL7 messaging, all Z segments within it start with the letter “Z”.

Z segments are one of the reasons why the HL7 Standard is sometimes called the flexible standard. The HL7 Standard is a framework for negotiation, and Z segments is an area ripe for negotiation between healthcare vendors and systems.

When using Z segments, it is important to have adequate documentation of what is included.

The following two tabs change content below.
  • Bio
  • Latest Posts
My Twitter profileMy Facebook profileMy Google+ profile

Health Standards

Engaging conversations on healthcare and technology. Your source for health IT standards, healthcare interoperability, Meaningful Use, and health technology trends.
My Twitter profileMy Facebook profileMy Google+ profile

Latest posts by Health Standards (see all)

  • Will web APIs and HL7 FHIR change our views on data interoperability? - July 11, 2017
  • [#HITsm chat 11.18.16] Celebrate Passing the #HITsm Torch - November 15, 2016
  • Passing the #HITsm torch - November 10, 2016

Filed Under: HL7 Messaging, HL7 Standard, HL7 Terms, What is HL7?

  • Pingback: HL7 Specifications Defined()

  • Senthil

    Hi, Very useful post. I have some questions about Z segments.

    1) Can I insert a Z segment anywhere in the message or can I only place the Z segment at the end?

    2) In our Customers Interface specification, if they have not defined a Z segment, but they send some Z segments, should I throw conformance error or not?

    Thanks in advance
    Senthil

    Z-Segment Answers – See Blog Post.

  • Pingback: HL7 Z-Segment: Questions and Answers()

  • Senthil

    Thanks, Really informative and helpful

  • Pingback: HL7 Z-Segment: Questions and Answers | HL7 Standards()

  • Pingback: HL7 Specifications Defined | HL7 Standards()

  • drtech

    Appointment Messages from HIS (SIU OR SRM)  do not contain order/procedure info .How do we translate into scheduling slots in departmental systems?

  • Rob Brull

    It is dependent on what the departmental systems support for inbound interfaces.
    1) Do the departmental interfaces support SIU or SRM messages?
    2) If they don’t, would they allow you to send an ORM without a procedure code?

  • Pingback: Confluence: Lab()

HL7 FHIR Resources

HL7 FHIR Resources

Connect

  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
Tweets by @HealthStandards

#HITSM Chat

[#HITsm chat 11.18.16] Celebrate Passing the #HITsm Torch

November 15, 2016

Moderated by Chad Johnson, @OchoTex, HealthStandards.com Editor and Corepoint Health Senior Marketing Manager. November 18th will be the last #HITsm chat under @HealthStandards. Celebrate ‘Passing the #HITsm torch’ to @techguy @HealthcareScene.

Passing the #HITsm torch

November 10, 2016

The first #HITsm tweet chat was held almost six years ago on Jan 10, 2011. Since that time, we have hosted approximately 280 #HITsm chats. While some of you may have participated in that very first chat (only 15 actually participated), I’m proud to say that the chats and the community have continued to grow […]

View More #HITSM Chat >

Podcasts

‘Hactivist’ Fred Trotter on the Cancer Moonshot, open source data in healthcare, and more

August 3, 2016

Artificial intelligence is a topic that isn’t going away in the health IT and medical community. One reason it’s come as far as it has is thanks to open sourcing, or shared data. Today’s guest, Fred Trotter, has a lot to say about the Vice President’s Cancer Moonshot initiative – which he was recognized for […]

Sue Schade on gender equality, CIO challenges, and value-based healthcare

July 27, 2016

View More Podcasts >

Copyright © 2021 Health Standards. All Rights Reserved.