NHS North West Genomics
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Questionnaire: Genetic Clinical Referral

Official URL: https://fhir.nwgenomics.nhs.uk/Questionnaire/GeneticClinicalReferral Version: 2.2.0
Unknown as of 2026-09-20 Computable Name:

For analysis purposes only - not an active or planned project. See Genetic Referrals for the narrative use case this Questionnaire sketches a computable data model for, and Genetic Clinical Referral - Differences from Genomic Test Order for how this compares to Genomic Test Order.

This is a closed-loop clinical referral into a genomics/clinical genetics service (see Genetic Referrals), modelled on HL7 v2 REF_I12 (Patient Referral) - not a laboratory order. Where a data item is genuinely the same one Genomic Test Order already captures (e.g. patient demographics), this Questionnaire reuses the same item, per the "check for existing patterns" principle in How To Engineer (scale and deliver) Interoperability.

This Questionnaire sketches a computable data model for a closed-loop clinical referral into a genomics/clinical genetics service - the narrative use case is Genetic Referrals, and the underlying HL7 v2 message this is modelled on is REF_I12 (Patient Referral), per that page's own Referral Data Model and Target Referral Model.

It is deliberately built the same way as Genomic Test Order and Genomic Test Report - a computable FHIR Questionnaire, not a spreadsheet or Word document - see How To Engineer (scale and deliver) Interoperability for why this IG prefers that approach. Where a data item is genuinely the same one Genomic Test Order already captures (e.g. patient demographics, both populating HL7 v2 PID), this Questionnaire reuses the same item rather than re-defining it, per the "check for existing patterns" principle on that same page.

Domain Archetype

erDiagram
    Patient ||--|{ ServiceRequest : subject
    ServiceRequest }o--|| PractitionerRole : "requester (Referring Provider, PRD)"
    ServiceRequest }o--o{ PractitionerRole : "performer (Referred-to Provider, PRD)"
    ServiceRequest }o--o{ HealthcareService : "performer (Referred-to Service, PRD)"
    PractitionerRole }o--|| Organization : organization
    ServiceRequest ||--o| Condition : reasonReference
    ServiceRequest ||--o{ DocumentReference : "supportingInfo (Family Letter)"
    DocumentReference ||--o| Binary : "content (Attachment.url)"
    ServiceRequest ||--o| Observation : "supportingInfo (G Number)"
    ServiceRequest ||--o{ RelatedPerson : "supportingInfo (Consultand)"
    RelatedPerson }o--|| Patient : "patient (the proband)"

    Patient {
        Identifier nhsNumber
        Identifier medicalRecordNumber
    }

    Observation {
        valueString pedigreeNumber "LOINC 74027-4"
    }

    ServiceRequest {
        Identifier referralIdentifier "RF1-6"
        code status "RF1-1"
        code priority "RF1-2"
        string code "RF1-4 - not yet coded"
        string note "brief note, if no letter attached"
    }

    PractitionerRole {
        Identifier practitionerIdentifier
    }

    Organization {
        Identifier organisationCode
    }

    HealthcareService {
        string name
    }

    Condition {
        CodeableConcept code "Suspected/confirmed condition"
    }

    DocumentReference {
        code type "Family Letter"
    }

    Binary {
        code contentType
        base64Binary data
    }

    RelatedPerson {
        Identifier nhsNumber "if known"
        HumanName name
        CodeableConcept relationship "NK1-3"
        code gender "NK1.15"
        date birthDate "NK1-16"
    }

This is a level 2 (field-level) sketch of Genetic Referrals' own Target Referral Model - the same entities, with the fields this Questionnaire actually asks.

Differences from Genomic Test Order

Both Questionnaires exist for the same reason - a computable common core, extended per scenario rather than re-modelled each time - but a clinical referral and a laboratory order are genuinely different things. The table below is the concrete comparison:

Aspect Genomic Test Order Genetic Clinical Referral
HL7 v2 basis OML_O21 (Laboratory Order), ORC/OBR REF_I12 (Patient Referral), RF1/PRD
What it requests A specific laboratory test, from a Genomic Test Directory code An assessment/service (e.g. genetic counselling, cascade testing) - not a specific lab test
Patient demographics PID - Patient group Same - reuses the identical items (both populate PID)
Who initiated it Healthcare Professional group (ORC-12/ORC-21) - a single referrer Referring Provider group (PRD, role = Referring Provider) - same shape, same reused items
Who it's going to (implicit - the destination LIMS is fixed, not chosen per-order) Referred-to Provider/Service group (PRD, role = Referred-to Provider) - new, no equivalent in Genomic Test Order. A referral explicitly names the receiving clinic/service; an order doesn't need to, because the Order Filler is already fixed
Test/order identifier Order Placer/Filler Number (ORC-2/ORC-3) - no genuine ORC-4/Order Group Number field exists on either Questionnaire (G Number/pedigree number is a separate, family-level concept - see Genomic General Ask At Order Entry) Referral Identifier (RF1-6) - a single identifier, not a Placer/Filler pair, and no eRS UBRN equivalent modelled (see Genetic Referrals - Notes on this sketch)
Priority ServiceRequest.priority (LN/82768-3) Same - reuses the identical item (RF1-2 maps onto the same FHIR element)
Reason Suspected disease/CITT code (LN/51967-8) plus free-text clinical information (NTE-1) Same reason-code item reused (RF1-12/DG1)
Specimen Specimen/Biopsy group - detailed fields (type, body site, accession number, collection/received dates, shipment tracking) None. A referral is a request for assessment, not a physical test - no specimen is collected until/unless it leads to an actual Genomic Test Order later
Order/test-type-specific detail Ask At Order Entry Questionnaires - structured, derivedFrom/extended, exactly one applies per order/test type (see Order Entry Questions) Partly structured. General family history stays in an attached family letter (supportingInfo -> DocumentReference -> Binary, the same pattern eRS uses) or free text - but a named consultand is structured via Genetic Referral Consultand (supportingInfo -> RelatedPerson, HL7 v2 NK1), derivedFrom/extended the same way, except repeating (one per named relative) rather than a single choice - see Order Entry Questions below

Family History

Genomic Test Order's Ask At Order Entry Questionnaires model order-type-specific detail as structured, coded data. A referral's equivalent detail doesn't have that today: per Genetic Referrals's "Genetic Counselling / Cascade Testing Referral" section and Cancer Background Information for Use Cases - Genetic Counselling Referral Across Regions, this detail is carried in an unstructured family letter - a dictated or secure-email clinical letter summarising the variant/condition, the inheritance pattern, and which relatives are thought to be at risk. Rather than inventing a structured family-history data model that doesn't exist in current practice, this Questionnaire models the letter itself as an attachment: ServiceRequest.supportingInfo references a DocumentReference, whose content.attachment.url points at a Binary holding the actual document (with a separate free-text ServiceRequest.note item as a fallback for a brief note sent without an attached letter). This is not a new pattern invented for this Questionnaire - it is the same shape NHS e-Referral Service (eRS) already uses for referral attachments (ReferralRequest.supportingInfo -> DocumentReference), see Genetic Referrals - eRS FHIR Resource Model.

General family history - the wider pedigree, who else is affected - stays in that unstructured letter; this Questionnaire doesn't attempt to structure all of it. The one part that is called out as structured is a named consultand - a specific at-risk relative who is themselves being referred for counselling/testing, not just mentioned in passing - see Order Entry Questions below.

Order Entry Questions

This Genetic Clinical Referral Questionnaire (defined above) is the common core referral form, the same way Genomic Test Order is the common core order form. Where a named consultand is being referred alongside (or instead of) the proband, that detail is added by a separate, derivedFrom/extended Questionnaire representing HL7 v2 NK1 (Next of Kin/Associated Parties) as a FHIR RelatedPerson, referenced from ServiceRequest.supportingInfo - the same supportingInfo slot the family letter's DocumentReference uses, just a different resource type:

Referral Content Questionnaire
Named consultand (structured, NK1/RelatedPerson) Genetic Clinical Referral - Consultand (RelatedPerson)

Unlike Genomic Test Order, where exactly one Ask At Order Entry Questionnaire applies per order/test type, this table is expected to grow by repetition rather than by alternative: a referral naming three at-risk relatives would reference three separate GeneticReferralConsultand-derived answers, one per consultand, not a choice between variants.

Data Models

Nothing on this page has been adopted as an active profile or interface in this IG.

Profile: Questionnaire

LinkIDTextCardinalityTypeDescription & Constraintsdoco
.. **For analysis purposes only - not an active or planned project.** See [Genetic Referrals](GeneticReferrals.html) for the narrative use case this Questionnaire sketches a computable data model for, and [Genetic Clinical Referral - Differences from Genomic Test Order](Questionnaire-GeneticClinicalReferral.html#differences-from-genomic-test-order) for how this compares to [Genomic Test Order](Questionnaire-GenomicTestOrder.html). This is a closed-loop clinical referral into a genomics/clinical genetics service (see [Genetic Referrals](GeneticReferrals.html)), modelled on HL7 v2 `REF_I12` (Patient Referral) - not a laboratory order. Where a data item is genuinely the same one [Genomic Test Order](Questionnaire-GenomicTestOrder.html) already captures (e.g. patient demographics), this Questionnaire reuses the same item, per the "check for existing patterns" principle in [How To Engineer (scale and deliver) Interoperability](HowToEngineerInteroperability.html#check-for-existing-patterns-before-modelling-new-ones). Questionnaire https://fhir.nwgenomics.nhs.uk/Questionnaire/GeneticClinicalReferral#2.2.0
... Patient Patient 0..1 group Definition: Patient
Value Set:
.... Patient-designNote Reuses the same items as Genomic Test Order's Patient group - both populate the same HL7 v2 PID segment. 0..1 display Value Set:
.... LN/45394-4 Patient surname 1..1 string Definition: Patient.name.family
Value Set:
.... LN/45392-8 Patient first name 1..1 string Definition: Patient.name.given
Value Set:
.... LN/21112-8 Date of birth 1..1 date Definition: Patient.birthDate
Value Set:
.... LN/56799-0 Address 0..1 group Definition: Patient.address
Value Set:
..... HL7/PID-11-1 Address Line 0..* string Definition: Patient.address.line
Value Set:
..... LN/45401-7 Postcode 0..1 string Definition: Patient.address.postalCode
Value Set:
.... LN/46098-0 Sex registered at birth 0..1 choice Definition: Patient.gender
Value Set: AdministrativeGender
.... LN/89061-6 NHS Number 0..1 string Definition: Patient.identifier:nhsNumber
Value Set:
.... LN/76435-7 Hospital Number (Medical Record Number) 0..1 string Definition: Patient.identifier:MedicalRecordNumber
Value Set:
.... LN/56797-4 Account Number (Episode or Stay Number) 0..1 string Definition: ServiceRequest.encounter.identifier.value
Value Set:
..... LN/56797-4-designNote REF_I12 PID-18 (Patient Account Number) - not the unrelated v2 ACC segment. 0..1 display Value Set:
.... pedigreeNumber G Number (Pedigree Number) 0..1 string Definition: Observation.valueString
Value Set:
..... pedigreeNumber-designNote Links the proband to consultands (at-risk relatives) referred as part of the same family investigation - see Distributed WGS (dWGS) Family Structure/Participant Type pattern. Modelled as Observation.valueString, not a Patient identifier - see Genomic General Ask At Order Entry's own G Number (Pedigree Number) item and WholeGenomicSequence.html for why. 0..1 display Value Set:
... ReferringProvider Referring Provider/Organisation (PRD, role = Referring Provider) 0..1 group Definition: PractitionerRole
Value Set:
.... ReferringProvider-designNote REF_I12 PRD segment, role-coded as Referring Provider. Reuses the same items as Genomic Test Order's Healthcare Professional group. 0..1 display Value Set:
.... LN/18705-4 Referring Clinician Name 1..1 string Definition: PractitionerRole.practitioner.display
Value Set:
.... LN/18707-0 Referring Clinician Current Speciality 0..1 choice Definition: PractitionerRole.specialty.coding.code
Value Set: UK Core Practice Setting Code
.... LN/46608-6 Referring Clinician Professional Identifier 0..1 string Definition: PractitionerRole.practitioner.identifier.value
Value Set:
.... LN/89058-2 Email 0..* string Definition: PractitionerRole.telecom.value
Value Set:
.... LN/81230-5 Phone 0..1 string Definition: PractitionerRole.telecom.value
Value Set:
.... HL7/PRD-referring-org Referring Organisation ODS Code 0..1 string Definition: PractitionerRole.organization.identifier.value
Value Set:
... ReferredToProvider Referred-to Provider/Service (PRD, role = Referred-to Provider) 0..1 group Definition: ServiceRequest.performer
Value Set:
.... ReferredToProvider-designNote REF_I12 PRD segment, role-coded as Referred-to Provider - who/what the referral is being sent to. Genomic Test Order has no equivalent group: an order's Order Filler is implicit/fixed (the destination LIMS), whereas a referral explicitly names the receiving clinic/service - see Differences from Genomic Test Order below. May be a named clinician (PractitionerRole) or a service/clinic (HealthcareService) rather than a named individual. 0..1 display Value Set:
.... ReferredToProvider/serviceName Referred-to Service/Clinic Name 0..1 string Definition: HealthcareService.name
Value Set:
.... ReferredToProvider/organisationCode Referred-to Organisation ODS Code 0..1 string Definition: PractitionerRole.organization.identifier.value
Value Set:
.... ReferredToProvider/clinicianName Named Consultant/Clinician (if known) 0..1 string Definition: PractitionerRole.practitioner.display
Value Set:
... Referral Referral (RF1) 0..1 group Definition: ServiceRequest
Value Set:
.... HL7/RF1-6 Referral Identifier 0..1 string Definition: ServiceRequest.identifier:OrderIdentifier
Value Set:
.... HL7/RF1-1 Referral Status 0..1 choice Definition: ServiceRequest.status
Value Set: RequestStatus
.... LN/82768-3 Priority 0..1 choice Definition: ServiceRequest.priority
Value Set: Request Priority
.... HL7/RF1-4 Referral Type / Service Requested 0..1 string Definition: ServiceRequest.code
Value Set:
..... HL7/RF1-4-designNote Not currently modelled as a coded value in this IG - see Genetic Referrals - Referral Data Model. Unlike Genomic Test Order's Test Code, this is not a Genomic Test Directory code: it names the clinical service/assessment being requested (e.g. genetic counselling, cascade testing), not a specific lab test. 0..1 display Value Set:
... ReasonForReferral Reason for Referral (RF1-12 / DG1) 0..1 group Value Set:
.... LN/51967-8 Suspected/confirmed condition (reason for referral) 0..* choice Definition: ServiceRequest.reasonCode
Value Set: Genomic Clinical Indication Codes
... FamilyHistory Family History (Family Letter) 0..1 group Value Set:
.... FamilyHistory-designNote Genomic Test Order's order/test-type-specific detail is captured by structured Ask At Order Entry Questionnaires. A referral has no equivalent structured sub-Questionnaire today: the corresponding detail - who else in the family is affected, the inheritance pattern, degree of relationship of at-risk relatives - travels as free text or an attached document within the unstructured **family letter** (see Genetic Referrals and Cancer Background Information for Use Cases - Genetic Counselling Referral Across Regions), not as discrete data items. A future structured representation could use FamilyMemberHistory per relative (see the FamilyMemberHistory examples on Genomic Test Report), but that is not attempted here. 0..1 display Value Set:
.... HL7/NTE-1 Family Letter / Clinical Details (free text) 0..1 string Definition: ServiceRequest.note
Value Set:
.... FamilyHistory/attachment Family Letter (attached document) 0..1 reference Definition: ServiceRequest.supportingInfo
Value Set:
..... FamilyHistory/attachment-designNote ServiceRequest.supportingInfo references a DocumentReference (the family letter), whose own DocumentReference.content.attachment.url points at a Binary holding the actual document - the same pattern NHS e-Referral Service (eRS) itself already uses for referral attachments (ReferralRequest.supportingInfo -> DocumentReference) - see Genetic Referrals - eRS FHIR Resource Model. 0..1 display Value Set:

doco Documentation for this format

Profile: Questionnaire

Patient

  • linkId: Patient
  • Definition:: Patient
  • Answers:

Reuses the same items as Genomic Test Order's Patient group - both populate the same HL7 v2 PID segment.

  • linkId: Patient-designNote
  • Answers:

Patient surname*

Patient first name*

Date of birth*

Address

Address Line

Postcode

Sex registered at birth

NHS Number

Hospital Number (Medical Record Number)

Account Number (Episode or Stay Number)

REF_I12 PID-18 (Patient Account Number) - not the unrelated v2 ACC segment.

  • linkId: LN/56797-4-designNote
  • Answers:

G Number (Pedigree Number)

Links the proband to consultands (at-risk relatives) referred as part of the same family investigation - see Distributed WGS (dWGS) Family Structure/Participant Type pattern. Modelled as Observation.valueString, not a Patient identifier - see Genomic General Ask At Order Entry's own G Number (Pedigree Number) item and WholeGenomicSequence.html for why.

  • linkId: pedigreeNumber-designNote
  • Answers:

Referring Provider/Organisation (PRD, role = Referring Provider)

REF_I12 PRD segment, role-coded as Referring Provider. Reuses the same items as Genomic Test Order's Healthcare Professional group.

  • linkId: ReferringProvider-designNote
  • Answers:

Referring Clinician Name*

Referring Clinician Current Speciality

Referring Clinician Professional Identifier

Email

Phone

Referring Organisation ODS Code

Referred-to Provider/Service (PRD, role = Referred-to Provider)

REF_I12 PRD segment, role-coded as Referred-to Provider - who/what the referral is being sent to. Genomic Test Order has no equivalent group: an order's Order Filler is implicit/fixed (the destination LIMS), whereas a referral explicitly names the receiving clinic/service - see Differences from Genomic Test Order below. May be a named clinician (PractitionerRole) or a service/clinic (HealthcareService) rather than a named individual.

  • linkId: ReferredToProvider-designNote
  • Answers:

Referred-to Service/Clinic Name

Referred-to Organisation ODS Code

Named Consultant/Clinician (if known)

Referral (RF1)

Referral Identifier

Referral Status

Priority

Referral Type / Service Requested

Not currently modelled as a coded value in this IG - see Genetic Referrals - Referral Data Model. Unlike Genomic Test Order's Test Code, this is not a Genomic Test Directory code: it names the clinical service/assessment being requested (e.g. genetic counselling, cascade testing), not a specific lab test.

  • linkId: HL7/RF1-4-designNote
  • Answers:

Reason for Referral (RF1-12 / DG1)

  • linkId: ReasonForReferral
  • Answers:

Suspected/confirmed condition (reason for referral)

Family History (Family Letter)

  • linkId: FamilyHistory
  • Answers:

Genomic Test Order's order/test-type-specific detail is captured by structured Ask At Order Entry Questionnaires. A referral has no equivalent structured sub-Questionnaire today: the corresponding detail - who else in the family is affected, the inheritance pattern, degree of relationship of at-risk relatives - travels as free text or an attached document within the unstructured **family letter** (see Genetic Referrals and Cancer Background Information for Use Cases - Genetic Counselling Referral Across Regions), not as discrete data items. A future structured representation could use FamilyMemberHistory per relative (see the FamilyMemberHistory examples on Genomic Test Report), but that is not attempted here.

  • linkId: FamilyHistory-designNote
  • Answers:

Family Letter / Clinical Details (free text)

Family Letter (attached document)

ServiceRequest.supportingInfo references a DocumentReference (the family letter), whose own DocumentReference.content.attachment.url points at a Binary holding the actual document - the same pattern NHS e-Referral Service (eRS) itself already uses for referral attachments (ReferralRequest.supportingInfo -> DocumentReference) - see Genetic Referrals - eRS FHIR Resource Model.

  • linkId: FamilyHistory/attachment-designNote
  • Answers:

Profile: Questionnaire

LinkIDDescription & Constraintsdoco
.. Patient Definition: Patient
Value Set:
... Patient-designNote Value Set:
... LN/45394-4 Definition: Patient.name.family
Value Set:
... LN/45392-8 Definition: Patient.name.given
Value Set:
... LN/21112-8 Definition: Patient.birthDate
Value Set:
... LN/56799-0 Definition: Patient.address
Value Set:
.... HL7/PID-11-1 Definition: Patient.address.line
Value Set:
.... LN/45401-7 Definition: Patient.address.postalCode
Value Set:
... LN/46098-0 Definition: Patient.gender
Value Set: AdministrativeGender
... LN/89061-6 Definition: Patient.identifier:nhsNumber
Value Set:
... LN/76435-7 Definition: Patient.identifier:MedicalRecordNumber
Value Set:
... LN/56797-4 Definition: ServiceRequest.encounter.identifier.value
Value Set:
.... LN/56797-4-designNote Value Set:
... pedigreeNumber Definition: Observation.valueString
Value Set:
.... pedigreeNumber-designNote Value Set:
.. ReferringProvider Definition: PractitionerRole
Value Set:
... ReferringProvider-designNote Value Set:
... LN/18705-4 Definition: PractitionerRole.practitioner.display
Value Set:
... LN/18707-0 Definition: PractitionerRole.specialty.coding.code
Value Set: UK Core Practice Setting Code
... LN/46608-6 Definition: PractitionerRole.practitioner.identifier.value
Value Set:
... LN/89058-2 Definition: PractitionerRole.telecom.value
Value Set:
... LN/81230-5 Definition: PractitionerRole.telecom.value
Value Set:
... HL7/PRD-referring-org Definition: PractitionerRole.organization.identifier.value
Value Set:
.. ReferredToProvider Definition: ServiceRequest.performer
Value Set:
... ReferredToProvider-designNote Value Set:
... ReferredToProvider/serviceName Definition: HealthcareService.name
Value Set:
... ReferredToProvider/organisationCode Definition: PractitionerRole.organization.identifier.value
Value Set:
... ReferredToProvider/clinicianName Definition: PractitionerRole.practitioner.display
Value Set:
.. Referral Definition: ServiceRequest
Value Set:
... HL7/RF1-6 Definition: ServiceRequest.identifier:OrderIdentifier
Value Set:
... HL7/RF1-1 Definition: ServiceRequest.status
Value Set: RequestStatus
... LN/82768-3 Definition: ServiceRequest.priority
Value Set: Request Priority
... HL7/RF1-4 Definition: ServiceRequest.code
Value Set:
.... HL7/RF1-4-designNote Value Set:
.. ReasonForReferral Value Set:
... LN/51967-8 Definition: ServiceRequest.reasonCode
Value Set: Genomic Clinical Indication Codes
.. FamilyHistory Value Set:
... FamilyHistory-designNote Value Set:
... HL7/NTE-1 Definition: ServiceRequest.note
Value Set:
... FamilyHistory/attachment Definition: ServiceRequest.supportingInfo
Value Set:
.... FamilyHistory/attachment-designNote Value Set:

doco Documentation for this format

Test this Questionnaire

Try this questionnaire out:

Responses for this Questionnaire

There are currently no QuestionnaireResponse instances for this Questionnaire defined in this IG.