PCA™ - Getting started | Digital Health Implementer Hub

DG-3067

Type

Guide

Version

1.0

Status

Active

Created date

02/06/2023

Updated date

05/06/2023

This is the current version.

Introduction

This developer guide is intended to get you up-and-running with using the PCA™ API. It covers everything you need to know from registration, authorisation, participation to publication and subscription.

Step 1: Understand the high-level architecture

Start by looking at the diagram below to understand the high-level architecture and it’s key components.

It is important to highlight that the PCA is composed of distinct FHIR servers each with a unique capability statement.

The table below outlines the PCA components and access URLs:

Component	Details	Access URL
Portal	Web channel for manual administration of the PCA	${env}/PcaPortal
Identity and Access Manager	Components and interfaces that manage client registration, access tokens and authorisation.	${env}/PcaAuthApi/v2
Participation Manager	Components and interfaces that manage the participation of organisations with the PCA. Creates the base URL for each participating organisation’s FHIR server when the organisation is registered as a PCA participant	${env}/PcaParticipationApi/v2
Publisher Agent* (see note below)	Components and interfaces that manage the publication of information to the PCA. One FHIR server per participating publisher organisation	${env}/PcaFhirApi/v2/publisher/${org_id}/fhir
Subscriber Agent* (see note below)	Components and interfaces that manage the subscription of information from the PCA. One FHIR server per participating subscriber organisation	${env}/PcaFhirApi/v2/subscriber/${org_id}/fhir
System of Record Agent	Components and interfaces that manage validation of information with sources of record / data	${env}/SystemOfRecordApi/v2

Note

The Publisher and Subscriber Agent have an added ${org} variable which will be specific to the organisation.

Step 2: Access environments

The ${env} URL for each environment is as following:

Environment	${env} URL
Software Vendor Testing	https://pca-svt.digitalhealth.gov.au
Production	https://pca.digitalhealth.gov.au

NOTE

The PCA FHIR servers may be co-located within the same operating environment. That is, since the base URL of a FHIR server can comprise both host and path URL components, all PCA FHIR servers could be located at that the same domain/IP address with different path components for each of their base URLs.

The {base} variable as defined by FHIR is the following for the FHIR servers

FHIR server	${base} URL
Publisher Agent	${env}/PcaFhirApi/v2/publisher/${org_id}/fhir
Subscriber Agent	${env}/PcaFhirApi/v2/subscriber/${org_id}/fhir

Step 3: Access the Portal

Most high-volume tasks can be done via the APIs, but some low volume operations are not supported through the API.

The portal can be accessed using the following URL: 

${env}/PcaPortal

welcome to the provider connect australia portal screenshot

Step 3.1: PRODA authentication

In order to access the PCA Portal a user requires to authenticate using PRODA:

The URL for PRODA environment is as following:

Environment	URL
Software Vendor Testing	https://vnd.proda.humanservices.gov.au
Production	https://proda.humanservices.gov.au

Users will need to create a PRODA account if they don’t already have one.

For assistance with creating PRODA accounts refer to the presentation below.

Note: Valid identity documents are not required for creating test accounts

PRODA - Register Accounts (PowerPoint)

Tools for testing APIs

While most systems use an existing wrapper library, it's essential to understand the underlying API HTTP methods. Using clients like Postman is the simplest way to test the APIs. Collections and environment imports to expedite this can be found under testing utilities.

FHIR Implementation Guide

You can find the HL7TM FHIR® specification for the APIs offered by the Provider Connect Australia service here: https://pca.digitalhealth.gov.au/fhir/4.0/

Configuration considerations

Outlined below are some possible profiles that show different configurations for presenting addressing information to the PCA:

Tertiary hospital with many specialties and addressable healthcare services at one location
Large service provider that provides a single speciality with many addressable healthcare services at many different locations (e.g. pathology, diagnostic imaging)
Small clinic with one speciality and one addressable healthcare service at a location (e.g. GP, Specialist, AHP, etc.)
Provider directory containing provider information for the purposes of secure messaging

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PCA™ - Getting started