--- type: "resource" title: "RelatedPerson" resource: "RelatedPerson" --- # RelatedPerson ## Introduction ## Scope and Usage RelatedPersons typically have a personal relationship or non-healthcare-specific professional relationship to the patient. A RelatedPerson resource is primarily used for attribution of information, since RelatedPersons are often a source of information about the patient. For keeping information about people for contact purposes for a patient, use a Patient's Contact element. Some individuals may serve as both a Patient's Contact and a Related Person. Example RelatedPersons are: - A patient's wife or husband - A patient's relatives or friends - A neighbor bringing a patient to the hospital - The owner or trainer of a horse - A patient's attorney or guardian - A Guide Dog ## Boundaries and Relationships The primary distinction between a Practitioner and a RelatedPerson is based on whether: - The person/animal operates on behalf of the care delivery organization over multiple patients (Practitioner) or, - Where the person/animal is not associated with the organization, and instead is allocated tasks specifically for the RelatedPerson's Patient (RelatedPerson). A standard extension [animalSpecies]([%extensions-location%]StructureDefinition-practitioner-animalSpecies) can be used to indicate the species of a service animal. When individual represented by a RelatedPerson is also a patient, that same individual may be represented by both a RelatedPerson and Patient resource, Patient.link provides the indication that they are the same individual. The RelatedPerson resource is used when that person is involved in the care of some other patient, while the Patient resource is used when the person is themselves the target of care. For example, a mother could be a Patient when receiving care for herself, but the mother could also be a RelatedPerson when involved in the care of her child. See the [Mother and newborn relationships](patient#maternity) section for more details on that example. **Boundaries between this and [PersonalRelationship](https://build.fhir.org/ig/HL7/admin-incubator/StructureDefinition-PersonalRelationship.html)** The RelatedPerson resource contains the details of both the individual and their relationship to the patient. RelatedPerson would be used when the individual is documented within the context of a patient's chart. RelatedPerson can be an actor and do things. PersonalRelationship cannot do things. PersonalRelationship is one way you can discover someone who can do things. A PersonalRelationship does not automatically indicate that the target individual may NOT be assumed to take actions on behalf of a source individual. ## StructureDefinition ### Elements (Simplified) - **[RelatedPerson](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson)** [0..*]: - A person that is related to a patient, but who is not a direct target of care - **[RelatedPerson.identifier](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.identifier)** [0..*]: [Identifier](/Identifier) A human identifier for this person - **[RelatedPerson.active](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.active)** [0..1]: [boolean](/boolean) Whether this related person's record is in active use - **[RelatedPerson.patient](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.patient)** [1..1]: Reference([Patient](/Patient)) The patient this person is related to - **[RelatedPerson.relationship](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.relationship)** [0..*]: [CodeableConcept](/CodeableConcept) preferred:[v3-PersonalRelationshipRoleType](/valueset-v3-PersonalRelationshipRoleType) The personal relationship of the related person to the patient - **[RelatedPerson.role](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.role)** [0..*]: [CodeableConcept](/CodeableConcept) preferred:[relatedperson-relationshiptype](/valueset-relatedperson-relationshiptype) The functional role of the related person to the patient - **[RelatedPerson.name](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.name)** [0..*]: [HumanName](/HumanName) A name associated with the person - **[RelatedPerson.telecom](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.telecom)** [0..*]: [ContactPoint](/ContactPoint) A contact detail for the person - **[RelatedPerson.gender](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.gender)** [0..1]: [code](/code) required:[administrative-gender](/valueset-administrative-gender) male | female | other | unknown - **[RelatedPerson.birthDate](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.birthDate)** [0..1]: [date](/date) The date on which the related person was born - **[RelatedPerson.address](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.address)** [0..*]: [Address](/Address) Address where the related person can be contacted or visited - **[RelatedPerson.photo](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.photo)** [0..*]: [Attachment](/Attachment) Image of the person - **[RelatedPerson.period](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.period)** [0..1]: [Period](/Period) Period of time that this relationship is considered valid - **[RelatedPerson.communication](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.communication)** [0..*]: [BackboneElement](/BackboneElement) A language which may be used to communicate with the related person about the patient's health - **[RelatedPerson.communication.language](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.communication.language)** [1..1]: [CodeableConcept](/CodeableConcept) required:[all-languages](/valueset-all-languages) The language which can be used to communicate with the related person about the patient's health - **[RelatedPerson.communication.preferred](/relatedperson-definitions#RelatedPerson.communication.preferred)** [0..1]: [boolean](/boolean) Language preference indicator ## Mappings - [RelatedPerson Mappings](/relatedperson-mappings) — 38 mapping entries ## Resource Packs ### list-RelatedPerson-packs.xml ```xml ``` ## Search Parameters - [active](/relatedperson-search#active) — **token** — Indicates if the related person record is active — `RelatedPerson.active` - [address](/relatedperson-search#address) — **string** — A server defined search that may match any of the string fields in the Address, including line, city, district, state, country, postalCode, and/or text — `RelatedPerson.address` - [address-city](/relatedperson-search#address-city) — **string** — A city specified in an address — `RelatedPerson.address.city` - [address-country](/relatedperson-search#address-country) — **string** — A country specified in an address — `RelatedPerson.address.country` - [address-postalcode](/relatedperson-search#address-postalcode) — **string** — A postal code specified in an address — `RelatedPerson.address.postalCode` - [address-state](/relatedperson-search#address-state) — **string** — A state specified in an address — `RelatedPerson.address.state` - [address-use](/relatedperson-search#address-use) — **token** — A use code specified in an address — `RelatedPerson.address.use` - [birthdate](/relatedperson-search#birthdate) — **date** — The Related Person's date of birth — `RelatedPerson.birthDate` - [email](/relatedperson-search#email) — **token** — A value in an email contact — `RelatedPerson.telecom.where(system='email')` - [gender](/relatedperson-search#gender) — **token** — Gender of the related person — `RelatedPerson.gender` - [identifier](/relatedperson-search#identifier) — **token** — An Identifier of the RelatedPerson — `RelatedPerson.identifier` - [name](/relatedperson-search#name) — **string** — A server defined search that may match any of the string fields in the HumanName, including family, give, prefix, suffix, suffix, and/or text — `RelatedPerson.name` - [family](/relatedperson-search#family) — **string** — A portion of the family name of the related person — `RelatedPerson.name.family` - [given](/relatedperson-search#given) — **string** — A portion of the given name of the related person — `RelatedPerson.name.given` - [patient](/relatedperson-search#patient) — **reference** — The patient this related person is related to — `RelatedPerson.patient` - [phone](/relatedperson-search#phone) — **token** — A value in a phone contact — `RelatedPerson.telecom.where(system='phone')` - [phonetic](/relatedperson-search#phonetic) — **string** — A portion of name using some kind of phonetic matching algorithm — `RelatedPerson.name` - [relationship](/relatedperson-search#relationship) — **token** — The personal relationship between the patient and the relatedperson — `RelatedPerson.relationship` - [role](/relatedperson-search#role) — **token** — The functional relationship between the patient and the relatedperson — `RelatedPerson.relationship` - [telecom](/relatedperson-search#telecom) — **token** — The value in any kind of contact — `RelatedPerson.telecom` [Full Search Parameters](/relatedperson-search) ## Examples - [benedicte](/relatedperson-example-benedicte) — relatedperson-example — RelatedPerson Benedicte du Marche - [f001](/relatedperson-example-f001) — relatedperson-example-f001-sarah — Sarah Abels - [f002](/relatedperson-example-f002) — relatedperson-example-f002-ariadne — Ariadne Bor-Jansma - [newborn-mom](/relatedperson-example-newborn-mom) — relatedperson-example-newborn-mom — Mother of Newborn Example for Newborn Example - [peter](/relatedperson-example-peter) — relatedperson-example-peter — RelatedPerson Peter Chalmers - [relatedperson-example](/relatedperson-example-relatedperson-example) — relatedperson-example - [relatedperson-example-f001-sarah](/relatedperson-example-relatedperson-example-f001-sarah) — relatedperson-example-f001-sarah - [relatedperson-example-f002-ariadne](/relatedperson-example-relatedperson-example-f002-ariadne) — relatedperson-example-f002-ariadne - [relatedperson-example-newborn-mom](/relatedperson-example-relatedperson-example-newborn-mom) — relatedperson-example-newborn-mom - [relatedperson-example-peter](/relatedperson-example-relatedperson-example-peter) — relatedperson-example-peter - [relatedperson-examples-header](/relatedperson-example-relatedperson-examples-header) — relatedperson-examples-header [Full Examples](/relatedperson-examples) ## Mapping Exceptions ### relatedperson-fivews-mapping-exceptions.xml ### Unmapped Elements - **FiveWs.what** — Unknown - **FiveWs.recorded** — Unknown - **FiveWs.author** — Unknown - **FiveWs.actor** — Unknown - **FiveWs.cause** — Unknown - **FiveWs.version** — Unknown - **FiveWs.witness** — Unknown - **FiveWs.where** — Unknown - **FiveWs.context** — Unknown - **FiveWs.init** — Unknown - **FiveWs.why** — Unknown - **FiveWs.source** — Unknown - **FiveWs.who** — Unknown - **FiveWs.grade** — Unknown - **FiveWs.planned** — Unknown - **FiveWs.subject** — Unknown ### relatedperson-participant-mapping-exceptions.xml ### Divergent Elements - **Participant.identifier** → **RelatedPerson.identifier** - shortUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Business Identifier for related person | resource=A human identifier for this person - definitionUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Business identifiers assigned to this related person by one of the applications involved. These identifiers remain constant as the resource is updated and propagates from server to server. | resource=Identifier for a person within a particular scope. - commentsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Note: This is a business identifier, not a resource identifier (see [discussion](resource.html#identifiers)). It is best practice for the identifier to only appear on a single resource instance, however business practices may occasionally dictate that multiple resource instances with the same identifier can exist - possibly even with different resource types. For example, multiple Patient and a Person resource instance might share the same social insurance number. | resource=RelatedPerson identifiers might not be unique across instances within a system, as a single human individual may be represented as many different RelatedPerson resources with different roles, periods, or relationships. Systems MAY use identifier for user identities (using the type='USER'). Refer to the [Security and Privacy](administration-module.html#secpriv) section for additional guidance on representing user identities. - requirementsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Allows identification of the related person as it is known by various participating systems and in a way that remains consistent across servers. | resource=People are known by a variety of ids. Some institutions maintain several, and most collect identifiers for exchange with other organizations concerning the patient. Examples are national person identifier and local identifier. - **Participant.active** → **RelatedPerson.active** - shortUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Whether the related person is currently active | resource=Whether this related person's record is in active use - **Participant.name** → **RelatedPerson.name** - missingTypes | reason=Unknown | pattern=string - extraTypes | reason=Unknown - shortUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=A name for the related person | resource=A name associated with the person - definitionUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Description of the related person as presented to a consumer while searching. | resource=A name associated with the person. ### relatedperson-participantcontactable-mapping-exceptions.xml ### Divergent Elements - **ParticipantContactable.telecom** → **RelatedPerson.telecom** - shortUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=A contact detail for the related person | resource=A contact detail for the person - definitionUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=A contact detail (e.g. a telephone number or an email address) by which the related person may be contacted. | resource=A contact detail for the person, e.g. a telephone number or an email address. - requirementsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Participants have (primary) ways to contact them in some way such as phone, email. | resource=People have (primary) ways to contact them in some way such as phone, email. - **ParticipantContactable.address** → **RelatedPerson.address** - shortUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=An address for the related person | resource=Address where the related person can be contacted or visited - definitionUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=An address where the related person can be reached. | resource=Address where the related person can be contacted or visited. - requirementsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=May need to keep track of related person addresses for contacting, billing or reporting requirements and also to help with identification. | resource=Need to keep track where the related person can be contacted per postal mail or visited. ### Unmapped Elements - **Participant.identifier** — Unknown - **Participant.name** — Unknown - **Participant.active** — Unknown ### relatedperson-participantliving-mapping-exceptions.xml ### Divergent Elements - **ParticipantLiving.birthDate** → **RelatedPerson.birthDate** - summary | reason=Unknown | pattern=false - shortUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=The date of birth for the related person | resource=The date on which the related person was born - definitionUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=The date when the related person was born. | resource=The date on which the related person was born. - requirementsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Used for identity verification and may drive other business processes. - **ParticipantLiving.gender** → **RelatedPerson.gender** - summary | reason=Unknown | pattern=false - definitionUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Administrative Gender - the gender that the related person is considered to have for administration and record keeping purposes. | resource=Administrative Gender - the gender that the person is considered to have for administration and record keeping purposes. - requirementsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Needed for identification of the individual, in combination with (at least) name and birth date. | resource=Needed for identification of the person, in combination with (at least) name and birth date. - **ParticipantLiving.photo** → **RelatedPerson.photo** - shortUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Image of the {{title} | resource=Image of the person - definitionUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=A facial image of the related person. | resource=Image of the person. - requirementsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Many EHR systems have the capability to capture an image of the participant. Fits with newer social media usage too. | resource=Many EHR systems have the capability to capture an image of persons. Fits with newer social media usage too. - **ParticipantLiving.communication** → **RelatedPerson.communication** - missingTypes | reason=Unknown | pattern=CodeableConcept - extraTypes | reason=Unknown - shortUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Language used by related person | resource=A language which may be used to communicate with the related person about the patient's health - definitionUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=The language which can be used to communicate with the related person. | resource=A language which may be used to communicate with the related person about the patient's health. - commentsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=The ISO-639-1 alpha 2 code in lower case for the language, optionally followed by a hyphen and the ISO-3166-1 alpha 2 code for the region in upper case; e.g. "en" for English, or "en-US" for American English versus "en-AU" for Australian English. | resource=If no language is specified, this *implies* that the default local language is spoken. If you need to convey proficiency for multiple modes, then you need multiple RelatedPerson.Communication associations. If the RelatedPerson does not speak the default local language, then the Interpreter Required Standard can be used to explicitly declare that an interpreter is required. - requirementsUnmatched | reason=Unknown | pattern=Most systems in multilingual countries will want to convey language. Not all systems actually need the regional dialect. | resource=If a related person does not speak the local language, interpreters may be required, so languages spoken and proficiency is an important things to keep track of both for patient and other persons of interest. ### Unmapped Elements - **Participant.identifier** — Unknown - **Participant.name** — Unknown - **Participant.active** — Unknown - **ParticipantContactable.address** — Unknown - **ParticipantContactable.telecom** — Unknown