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Introduction

Overview

The Digital Health Drug Repository (DHDR) was established to improve the quality of care Ontarians receive by providing health care providers with access to a comprehensive dispensed medication and pharmacy service profile for their patients. A mechanism for Ontario’s health care providers to access drug and pharmacy service information in the DHDR has existed for some time. With the ongoing development and expansion of consumer applications for patient access, an application programming interface (API) has been developed to enable patients, their designates, as well as delegates, to access DHDR information.

The Digital Health Drug Repository (DHDR) is a provincial information source of medication and pharmacy service information. Currently, the DHDR includes publicly funded drug and pharmacy services, and all monitored drugs (regardless of payor) contributed by the Ministry of Health.

COVID-19 vaccination information from COVaxON (the ministry’s provincial solution for COVID-19 vaccination information) is also available through the DHDR. COVaxON includes information on all COVID-19 vaccinations administered by any health care provider in any location in the province.

See www.ontario.ca/mydruginfo or Information Available to Health Care Providers through the Digital Health Drug Repository for more information about the DHDR.

Note: see DHDR FHIR R4 Data Contribution and Query Implementation Guide for systems and applications contributing to and/or querying DHDR for display to health care providers.

Digital Health Information Exchange (DHIEX)

On January 1, 2021, an amendment to Ontario Regulation 329/04 (“O. Reg. 329/04” or the “regulation”) came into force to establish the DHIEX framework for interoperability specifications, as set out in sections 26 to 34 of the regulation. As a cornerstone of the Ministry of Health’s Digital First for Health Strategy, the DHIEX framework is intended to guide and support adoption of modern interoperability specifications for seamless access to integrated records of personal health information. In accordance with the regulation, Ontario Health is required to, subject to the review and approval of the Minister, establish, maintain and amend interoperability specifications for digital health assets selected, developed or used by health information custodians.

In accordance with O. Reg. 329/04, a health information custodian is required to ensure that every digital health asset that it selects, develops or uses complies with every applicable interoperability specification, as it may be amended from time to time, within the time period set out in the specification. Compliance with this requirement does not relieve a health information custodian of its obligation to comply with the other provisions of PHIPA and its regulations.

Content and Organization

The implementation guide is organized into the following sections:

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Disclaimer

Pursuant to O. Reg. 329/04, Ontario Health is required to, subject to the review and approval of the Minister, establish, maintain and amend interoperability specifications. The Minister may direct Ontario Health to establish or amend interoperability specifications, and Ontario Health is required to comply with such direction.

In accordance with O. Reg. 329/04, Ontario Health makes this interoperability specification available to the public by posting it on Ontario Health’s website or by such other means as Ontario Health considers advisable.

You understand and agree that:

  1. This specification is provided “AS IS” without any warranties or representations of any kind, express or implied, in fact or in law;
  2. Ontario Health is not responsible for your use or reliance on the information in this specification or any costs associated with such use or reliance; and
  3. Ontario Health has no liability to any party for that party’s access, use or reliance on this specification or any of the information contained in it.

Document Control

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