Basic data types
KMEHR makes use of usual XSchema literals such as xsd:boolean, xsd:decimal and xsd:nonNegativeInteger.
We briefly describe here only the following basic data types.
Date and time
Any complete date within KMEHR message is formatted according to xsd:date template. Any complete time within KMEHR messages is formatted according to the xsd:time template.
Partial dates are also allowed and make use of the xsd:gYear and xsd:gYearMonth templates.
XML examples
<patient>
<birthdate>
<date>1932-03-10</date>
</birthdate>
</patient>
<patient>
<birthdate>
<yearmonth>1932-03</yearmonth>
</birthdate>
</patient>
String and text
A String is a literal that refers to the xsd:string template of the appropriate W3C recommendation. It represents a string of characters that should be understandable without translation (a patient's name, a city name, ...).
User's dependent text must be transmitted through the text element of the type TextType that:
- excludes the possibility of mixing text with other XML elements
- forces the specification of the language used
Language
The natural language that is used within the text element is described using the L attribute filled with the languages identifiers defined by primitive xsd:language data type that uses codes from IETF RFC 1766 (Tags for the identification of Languages). In this RFC, tags are constructed from two-letter language codes as defined by ISO 639, from two-letter country codes as defined by ISO 3166, or from language identifiers registered with the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA-LANGCODES).
The most common languages in Belgium are:
- nl : Dutch
- fr : French
- de : German
- en : English
XML example
<beginmoment> ... <text L="nl">één jaar geleden</text> ... </beginmoment>