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Versioning

FHIR Questionnaire versioning

FHIR Questionnaire is a definition resource - it can be used for a long period of time (years), and it should support a way for storing changes and enhancements that required by new circumstances. In the same time it must to do that in a safe way - not to break users of the old Questionnaires. FHIR Specification has an answer for this - Canonical Resource versioning.

Canonical Resource versioning

Questionnaire has an url, version and status properties. url and version are used as Questionnaire uniq identifier - they should be unique globally.

You should pay attention to make url globally unique - to not collide with Questionnaires produced by other organizations.

Different Questionnaire versions share the same url.

Questionnaire status helps determine it's usage.

FHIR Questionnaire statuses: draft, active, retired and unknown (unknown should not be used by user)

  • draft - used when you developing a form

  • active - used for forms in production - you should be carefull, and do not change these forms (small changes are ok).

  • retired- used for production retired forms - you also should be carefull about these, they are used for historical reasons

There are main rules - which helps you to stay the right way:

  • Questionnaire with the same logical meaning share the same url.

  • New Questionnare versions should be stored as new (separate) FHIR resources - which share url, but differ with version.

  • version property can be empty - but it's not recommended to have more than one form with same url but without version.

  • when form is ready for production use - you should make status = active

  • Only small changes (like fixing typos) are allowed in Questionnaires in status active and retired.

UI Form Builder versioning support

UI Builder gives you an ability to change version related properties and helps you to not screw up by warning your when you done something unsafe.

It warns you when:

  • you change an ID of Questionnaire is there are already Questionnaire with this new ID

  • there is other questionaire with same URL+VERSION - preventing you from doing unconsistency

  • you trying to move Questionnaire into status 'active' without URL specified.

  • you trying to edit Questionnaire in status 'active' or 'retired'

  • you trying to move Questionnaire into status 'draft' from 'active' or 'retired'.

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