The Commissioning Data Set is the basic structure used for the submission of commissioning data to the Secondary Uses Service and is designed to be capable of individually conveying many different Commissioning Data Set structures, encompassing Emergency Care Attendances, Out-Patient Attendances, Admitted Patient Care. (Elective Admission List is also defined in Commissioning Data Set version 6-2 only).
The Commissioning Data Sets have been defined in specific components known as a CDS Type.
Specific notation is used to indicate the requirements of the Commissioning Data Set XML Schema Design conditions for submission of data in the Commissioning Data Sets.
The structure of the Commissioning Data Set XML Schema is shown by the use of Data Groups and Sub Groups within those Data Groups. For each Data Group, Sub Group and individual Data Element, the allowed cardinality at each level is also shown in the "Status" and "Repeats" columns.
The CDS Type specifications must therefore be read in this hierarchy, using the Status and Repeat conditions within the Data Groups and Sub Groups, to determine the requirements for the individual Data Elements.
Status Column Notation
The Notation used for the "STATUS" column is as follows:
| STATUS | MEANING | DESCRIPTION |
| M | MANDATORY | This signifies that the collection and submission of this Commissioning Data Set data is deemed MANDATORY and its presence is necessary for the CDS Type to be correctly validated and accepted for processing by the Secondary Uses Service. If a data item is shown as MANDATORY, this should also be regarded as REQUIRED by the Department of Health and Social Care. In most instances, data marked as MANDATORY in a Sub Group will result in its parent Data Group also being marked as mandatory, but this is not always the case. For instance, although the Care Episode - Clinical Diagnosis Group (ICD) is marked as R=REQUIRED (and therefore need not actually be populated), if it is used then both the DIAGNOSIS SCHEME IN USE and the PRIMARY DIAGNOSIS (ICD) are marked as M=MANDATORY and must both be present. |
| R | REQUIRED | This signifies that the collection and submission of this Commissioning Data Set data is deemed REQUIRED by the Department of Health and Social Care to comply with authorised NHS Standards, Policies and Directives. Therefore whenever a Commissioning Data Set is collected and subsequently submitted to the Secondary Uses Service, this data must be supported and populated into the relevant data sets if the data is available. Note that "temporal" conditions may mean that there are instances where this directive cannot be fulfilled. For instance in a CDS V6-3 Type 130 - Admitted Patient Care - Finished General Episode Commissioning Data Set, ICD and OPCS data groups are marked as "Required" indicating that this data should be included. However, if at the time of submission to the Secondary Uses Service this data remains incomplete (perhaps awaiting coding in the ORGANISATION), the remaining data in the CDS record should still be submitted. Once the ORGANISATION has updated its systems with the data, the CDS Type relating to that ACTIVITY should then be resubmitted to the Secondary Uses Service. |
| O | OPTIONAL | This signifies that the collection and submission of this Commissioning Data Set data is OPTIONAL. Its inclusion in the Commissioning Data Set is therefore determined by "local agreement" between the ORGANISATIONS exchanging the data. Note that even if marked O=OPTIONAL, any data included in a Commissioning Data Set submission to the Secondary Uses Service must comply with its specification published in the NHS Data Model and Dictionary otherwise the data may be deemed invalid and rejected. |
| X | Not yet authorised | This is used where the Data Element name has been included in the Commissioning Data Set design, usually for pilot use, but is not yet authorised for transmission by the wider NHS. |
Repeats Column Notation
Examples of the Notation used for the "REPEATS" column are as follows:
| REPEATS | DESCRIPTION | |
| 0..1 | This signifies that the permitted occurrences of the Data Group, Sub Group or individual Data Element are from a minimum of 0 to a maximum of 1. | |
| 0..9 | This signifies that the permitted occurrences of the Data Group, Sub Group or individual Data Element are from a minimum of 0 to a maximum of 9. | |
| 0..* | This signifies that the permitted occurrences of the Data Group, Sub Group or individual Data Element are from a minimum of 0 to an unlimited maximum. | |
| 1..1 | This signifies that the permitted occurrences of the Data Group, Sub Group or individual Data Element are from a minimum of 1 to a maximum of 1. | |
| 1..97 | This signifies that the permitted occurrences of the Data Group, Sub Group or individual Data Element are from a minimum of 1 to a maximum of 97. | |
| 1..* | This signifies that the permitted occurrences of the Data Group, Sub Group or individual Data Element are from a minimum of 1 to an unlimited maximum. | |
Rules Column Notation
An entry in the "Rules" column shows that a specific Rule applies to submission of an individual Data Element.
The meaning of these Rules can be found in Commissioning Data Set Business Rules.
Notation Examples
The following are examples of some common scenarios:
| EXAMPLE 1: A MANDATORY Data Group with differing Sub-Groups and component data status conditions. |
The following example shows a MANDATORY Data Group - therefore the Data Group must be present for the CDS Type to be validated and accepted for processing by the Secondary Uses Service. When a Data Group is used:
The following data structure is one of three options when completing the Patient Identity Data Group: |
| 1..1 | DATA GROUP: VERIFIED IDENTITY STRUCTURE Must be used where the NHS NUMBER STATUS INDICATOR CODE National Code = 01 (Number present and verified) | ||||
| R | 0..1 | DATA GROUP: LOCAL IDENTIFIER STRUCTURE | Rules | ||
| M | 1..1 | LOCAL PATIENT IDENTIFIER (EXTENDED) | F S3 | ||
| M | 1..1 | ORGANISATION IDENTIFIER (LOCAL PATIENT IDENTIFIER) | F | ||
| M | 1..1 | Data Element Components | Rules | ||
| M | 1..1 | NHS NUMBER | F S3 | ||
| M | 1..1 | NHS NUMBER STATUS INDICATOR CODE | V | ||
| M | 1..1 | POSTCODE OF USUAL ADDRESS | F S3 | ||
| R | 0..1 | ORGANISATION IDENTIFIER (RESIDENCE RESPONSIBILITY) | F | ||
| R | 0..1 | PERSON BIRTH DATE | F S3 S12 | ||
EXPLANATION: The parent DATA GROUP: VERIFIED IDENTITY STRUCTURE has a "Status" of M=MANDATORY which indicates that this Data Group must be present in the Commissioning Data Set to ensure correct validation and acceptance when submitted to the Secondary Uses Service. The parent Data Group "Repeats" = 1..1 indicates that only one occurrence of this Data Group must flow in this particular Commissioning Data Set record. |
| EXAMPLE 2: A REQUIRED Data Group with differing component data status conditions. |
The following example shows a REQUIRED Data Group. This data must be present in the relevant Commissioning Data Set if available. However, if submitted to the Secondary Uses Service, omission of this REQUIRED Data Group will not cause rejection. When the Data Group is used:
|
| Notation | DATA GROUP: CONSULTANT EPISODE - CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS GROUP (ICD) | ||||
| Group Status R | Group Repeats 0..1 | FUNCTION: To carry the details of the ICD coded Clinical Diagnoses for the Patient. | |||
| M | 1..1 | Data Element Components | Rules | ||
| M | 1..1 | DIAGNOSIS SCHEME IN USE | V | ||
| M | 1..1 | DATA GROUP: PRIMARY DIAGNOSIS | Rules | ||
| M | 1..1 | PRIMARY DIAGNOSIS (ICD) | F H4 | ||
| R | 0..* | DATA GROUP: SECONDARY DIAGNOSIS | Rules | ||
| M | 1..1 | SECONDARY DIAGNOSIS (ICD) | F H4 | ||
EXPLANATION: The DATA GROUP: CONSULTANT EPISODE - CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS GROUP (ICD) "Status" of R=Required indicates that this Data Group must be populated in the relevant Commissioning Data Set if the data is available. The Data Group "Repeats" = 0..1 indicates that population of this Data Group is not necessary to enable the Commissioning Data Set to be sent to the Secondary Uses Service. If it is sent, then only one occurrence of this Data Group may flow in this particular Commissioning Data Set record. |
| EXAMPLE 3: An OPTIONAL Data Group with differing component data status conditions. |
The following example shows an OPTIONAL Data Group. Its inclusion in the Commissioning Data Sets is therefore determined by "local agreement" between ORGANISATIONS exchanging the data. When the Data Group is used:
|
| Notation | DATA GROUP: PATIENT PATHWAY | ||
| Group Status O | Group Repeats 0..1 | FUNCTION: To carry the details of the Patient Pathway. | |
| M | 1..1 | DATA GROUP: PATIENT PATHWAY IDENTITY | Rules | |||
| M Or M | 1..1 1..1 | UNIQUE BOOKING REFERENCE NUMBER (CONVERTED) Or PATIENT PATHWAY IDENTIFIER | F F I2 | |||
| M | 1..1 | ORGANISATION IDENTIFIER (PATIENT PATHWAY IDENTIFIER ISSUER) | F I2 | |||
| M | 1..1 | DATA GROUP: REFERRAL TO TREATMENT PERIOD CHARACTERISTICS | Rules | |||
| M | 1..1 | REFERRAL TO TREATMENT PERIOD STATUS | V | |||
| M | 1..1 | WAITING TIME MEASUREMENT TYPE (COMMISSIONING DATA SET) | V | |||
| O | 0..1 | REFERRAL TO TREATMENT PERIOD START DATE | F S13 | |||
| O | 0..1 | REFERRAL TO TREATMENT PERIOD END DATE | F S13 | |||
EXPLANATION: The DATA GROUP: PATIENT PATHWAY "Status" of O=OPTIONAL indicates that this Data Group may be omitted and its inclusion in the Commissioning Data Set is determined by "local agreement" between the ORGANISATIONS exchanging the data. Note that even if marked O=OPTIONAL, any data included in a Commissioning Data Set submission to the Secondary Uses Service must comply with its specification published in the NHS Data Model and Dictionary otherwise the data may be deemed invalid and rejected. The Data Group "Repeats" = 0..1 indicates that population of this Data Group is not necessary to enable the Commissioning Data Set to be sent to the Secondary Uses Service. If it is sent, then only one occurrence of this Data Group may flow in this particular Commissioning Data Set record. If the DATA GROUP: PATIENT PATHWAY is submitted, then both of the sub-groups (DATA GROUP: PATIENT PATHWAY IDENTITY, and DATA GROUP: REFERRAL TO TREATMENT PERIOD CHARACTERISTICS) must be submitted. Data Elements marked as M=MANDATORY, must be populated. The "Repeats" notation of 1..1 indicates that only one occurrence of each of these Data Elements are valid. In the DATA GROUP: PATIENT PATHWAY sub-group, either UNIQUE BOOKING REFERENCE NUMBER (CONVERTED) or PATIENT PATHWAY IDENTIFIER must be submitted (but not both). |