Each line of the Schedule File is a minified JSON object that conveys information about a Schedule to which slots are attached. The Schedule represents a particular healthcare service (e.g., primary care appointments, specialist consultations, or procedures) offered at a specific location or by a specific practitioner role.

Example Usage Scenarios

Schedules can reference multiple actors in the actor array to provide more specific context about the healthcare service. Common patterns include:

• Location-only schedules: Reference only a Location resource, indicating that appointments are available at that location but not tied to a specific practitioner role.
• PractitionerRole-only schedules: Reference only a PractitionerRole resource, indicating appointments with that specific practitioner role regardless of location.
• Location and PractitionerRole schedules: Reference both Location and PractitionerRole resources, indicating appointments for a specific practitioner role at a specific location. This is useful for:
  • Multi-location practices where practitioner roles work at different sites
  • Specialty clinics where specific practitioner roles provide services at designated locations
  • Healthcare systems where practitioner role schedules vary by location

When multiple actors are specified, all referenced resources apply to the schedule and its associated slots.

Mandatory and Must Support Data Elements

The following data elements must always be present or must be supported if the data is present in the sending system. They are presented below in a simple human-readable explanation. Profile specific guidance and examples are provided as well. The Formal Views below provides the formal summary, definitions, and terminology requirements.

Each Schedule Must Have:

• a serviceType
• at least one actor

Each Schedule Must Support:

• a display for the actor

Profile Specific Implementation Guidance:

Each Schedule object may optionally include extension JSON objects in the Schedule's extension array to provide additional context about the healthcare services offered. Common extensions might include:

• Specialty extension
• Service category extensions
• PractitionerRole extensions

Extensions should follow FHIR extension conventions and use appropriate extension URLs. Implementers may define custom extensions as needed for their specific use cases, following FHIR extension guidelines.

• Key Elements Table
• Differential Table
• Snapshot Table
• Statistics/References
• All

Name	Flags	Card.	Type	Description & Constraints    Filter: Bindings Constraints Obligations
Schedule		0..*	Schedule	A container for slots of time that may be available for booking appointments
Schedule.implicitRules	?! This element is a modifier element. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	uri	A set of rules under which this content was created
Schedule.Slices for extension		0..*	Extension	Extension Slice: Unordered, Open by value:url Slicing Note: The rules on this element (including its children) apply to all the slices, but are not repeated in them
Schedule.Slices for extension.extension:specialty		0..*	Coding	Schedule Specialty URL: http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/schedule-specialty
Schedule.modifierExtension	?! This element is a modifier element.	0..*	Extension	Extensions that cannot be ignored
Schedule.active	?! This element is a modifier element. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	boolean	Whether this schedule is in active use
Schedule.serviceType	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	1..*	CodeableConcept	Specific service Binding: ServiceType (example)
Schedule.actor	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	1..*	Reference(Practitioner | PractitionerRole | Healthcare Service | Location | Patient | RelatedPerson | Device)	Resource(s) that availability information is being provided for
Schedule.actor.reference	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries. C	1..1	string	Literal reference, Relative, internal or absolute URL
Schedule.actor.display	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	string	Text alternative for the resource
Documentation for this format

Terminology Bindings

Path	Status	Usage	ValueSet	Version	Source
Schedule.serviceType	Base	example	Service type	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.

Constraints

Id	Grade	Path(s)	Description	Expression
dom-2	error	Schedule	If the resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT contain nested Resources	contained.contained.empty()
dom-3	error	Schedule	If the resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL be referred to from elsewhere in the resource or SHALL refer to the containing resource	contained.where((('#'+id in (%resource.descendants().reference | %resource.descendants().as(canonical) | %resource.descendants().as(uri) | %resource.descendants().as(url))) or descendants().where(reference = '#').exists() or descendants().where(as(canonical) = '#').exists() or descendants().where(as(canonical) = '#').exists()).not()).trace('unmatched', id).empty()
dom-4	error	Schedule	If a resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT have a meta.versionId or a meta.lastUpdated	contained.meta.versionId.empty() and contained.meta.lastUpdated.empty()
dom-5	error	Schedule	If a resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT have a security label	contained.meta.security.empty()
dom-6	best practice	Schedule	A resource should have narrative for robust management	text.`div`.exists()
ele-1	error	**ALL** elements	All FHIR elements must have a @value or children	hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1	error	**ALL** extensions	Must have either extensions or value[x], not both	extension.exists() != value.exists()

This structure is derived from Schedule

Name	Flags	Card.	Type	Description & Constraints    Filter: Bindings Constraints Obligations
Schedule		0..*	Schedule	A container for slots of time that may be available for booking appointments
Schedule.Slices for extension		0..*	Extension	Extension Slice: Unordered, Open by value:url Slicing Note: The rules on this element (including its children) apply to all the slices, but are not repeated in them
Schedule.Slices for extension.extension:specialty		0..*	Coding	Schedule Specialty URL: http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/schedule-specialty
Schedule.serviceType	S This element must be supported.	1..*	CodeableConcept	Specific service
Schedule.actor	S This element must be supported.	1..*	Reference(Practitioner | PractitionerRole | Healthcare Service | Location | Patient | RelatedPerson | Device)	Resource(s) that availability information is being provided for
Schedule.actor.reference	S This element must be supported.	1..1	string	Literal reference, Relative, internal or absolute URL
Schedule.actor.display	S This element must be supported.	0..1	string	Text alternative for the resource
Documentation for this format

Name	Flags	Card.	Type	Description & Constraints    Filter: Bindings Constraints Obligations
Schedule		0..*	Schedule	A container for slots of time that may be available for booking appointments
Schedule.id	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	id	Logical id of this artifact
Schedule.meta	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	Meta	Metadata about the resource
Schedule.implicitRules	?! This element is a modifier element. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	uri	A set of rules under which this content was created
Schedule.language		0..1	code	Language of the resource content Binding: CommonLanguages (preferred): A human language. Additional Bindings Purpose AllLanguages Max Binding
Schedule.text		0..1	Narrative	Text summary of the resource, for human interpretation This profile does not constrain the narrative in regard to content, language, or traceability to data elements
Schedule.contained		0..*	Resource	Contained, inline Resources
Schedule.Slices for extension		0..*	Extension	Extension Slice: Unordered, Open by value:url Slicing Note: The rules on this element (including its children) apply to all the slices, but are not repeated in them
Schedule.Slices for extension.extension:specialty		0..*	Coding	Schedule Specialty URL: http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/schedule-specialty
Schedule.modifierExtension	?! This element is a modifier element.	0..*	Extension	Extensions that cannot be ignored
Schedule.identifier	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..*	Identifier	External Ids for this item
Schedule.active	?! This element is a modifier element. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	boolean	Whether this schedule is in active use
Schedule.serviceCategory	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..*	CodeableConcept	High-level category Binding: ServiceCategory (example)
Schedule.serviceType	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	1..*	CodeableConcept	Specific service Binding: ServiceType (example)
Schedule.specialty	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..*	CodeableConcept	Type of specialty needed Binding: PracticeSettingCodeValueSet (preferred): Additional details about where the content was created (e.g. clinical specialty).
Schedule.actor	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	1..*	Reference(Practitioner | PractitionerRole | Healthcare Service | Location | Patient | RelatedPerson | Device)	Resource(s) that availability information is being provided for
Schedule.actor.id		0..1	string	Unique id for inter-element referencing
Schedule.actor.extension		0..*	Extension	Additional content defined by implementations Slice: Unordered, Open by value:url
Schedule.actor.reference	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries. C	1..1	string	Literal reference, Relative, internal or absolute URL
Schedule.actor.type	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	uri	Type the reference refers to (e.g. "Patient") Binding: ResourceType (extensible): Aa resource (or, for logical models, the URI of the logical model).
Schedule.actor.identifier	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	Identifier	Logical reference, when literal reference is not known
Schedule.actor.display	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	string	Text alternative for the resource
Schedule.planningHorizon	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	Period	Period of time covered by schedule
Schedule.comment		0..1	string	Comments on availability
Documentation for this format

Terminology Bindings

Path	Status	Usage	ValueSet	Version	Source
Schedule.language	Base	preferred	Common Languages	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.
Schedule.serviceCategory	Base	example	Service category	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.
Schedule.serviceType	Base	example	Service type	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.
Schedule.specialty	Base	preferred	Practice Setting Code Value Set	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.
Schedule.actor.type	Base	extensible	ResourceType	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.

Constraints

Id	Grade	Path(s)	Description	Expression
dom-2	error	Schedule	If the resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT contain nested Resources	contained.contained.empty()
dom-3	error	Schedule	If the resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL be referred to from elsewhere in the resource or SHALL refer to the containing resource	contained.where((('#'+id in (%resource.descendants().reference | %resource.descendants().as(canonical) | %resource.descendants().as(uri) | %resource.descendants().as(url))) or descendants().where(reference = '#').exists() or descendants().where(as(canonical) = '#').exists() or descendants().where(as(canonical) = '#').exists()).not()).trace('unmatched', id).empty()
dom-4	error	Schedule	If a resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT have a meta.versionId or a meta.lastUpdated	contained.meta.versionId.empty() and contained.meta.lastUpdated.empty()
dom-5	error	Schedule	If a resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT have a security label	contained.meta.security.empty()
dom-6	best practice	Schedule	A resource should have narrative for robust management	text.`div`.exists()
ele-1	error	**ALL** elements	All FHIR elements must have a @value or children	hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1	error	**ALL** extensions	Must have either extensions or value[x], not both	extension.exists() != value.exists()

Key Elements View

Name	Flags	Card.	Type	Description & Constraints    Filter: Bindings Constraints Obligations
Schedule		0..*	Schedule	A container for slots of time that may be available for booking appointments
Schedule.implicitRules	?! This element is a modifier element. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	uri	A set of rules under which this content was created
Schedule.Slices for extension		0..*	Extension	Extension Slice: Unordered, Open by value:url Slicing Note: The rules on this element (including its children) apply to all the slices, but are not repeated in them
Schedule.Slices for extension.extension:specialty		0..*	Coding	Schedule Specialty URL: http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/schedule-specialty
Schedule.modifierExtension	?! This element is a modifier element.	0..*	Extension	Extensions that cannot be ignored
Schedule.active	?! This element is a modifier element. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	boolean	Whether this schedule is in active use
Schedule.serviceType	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	1..*	CodeableConcept	Specific service Binding: ServiceType (example)
Schedule.actor	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	1..*	Reference(Practitioner | PractitionerRole | Healthcare Service | Location | Patient | RelatedPerson | Device)	Resource(s) that availability information is being provided for
Schedule.actor.reference	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries. C	1..1	string	Literal reference, Relative, internal or absolute URL
Schedule.actor.display	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	string	Text alternative for the resource
Documentation for this format

Terminology Bindings

Path	Status	Usage	ValueSet	Version	Source
Schedule.serviceType	Base	example	Service type	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.

Constraints

Id	Grade	Path(s)	Description	Expression
dom-2	error	Schedule	If the resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT contain nested Resources	contained.contained.empty()
dom-3	error	Schedule	If the resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL be referred to from elsewhere in the resource or SHALL refer to the containing resource	contained.where((('#'+id in (%resource.descendants().reference | %resource.descendants().as(canonical) | %resource.descendants().as(uri) | %resource.descendants().as(url))) or descendants().where(reference = '#').exists() or descendants().where(as(canonical) = '#').exists() or descendants().where(as(canonical) = '#').exists()).not()).trace('unmatched', id).empty()
dom-4	error	Schedule	If a resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT have a meta.versionId or a meta.lastUpdated	contained.meta.versionId.empty() and contained.meta.lastUpdated.empty()
dom-5	error	Schedule	If a resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT have a security label	contained.meta.security.empty()
dom-6	best practice	Schedule	A resource should have narrative for robust management	text.`div`.exists()
ele-1	error	**ALL** elements	All FHIR elements must have a @value or children	hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1	error	**ALL** extensions	Must have either extensions or value[x], not both	extension.exists() != value.exists()

Differential View

This structure is derived from Schedule

Name	Flags	Card.	Type	Description & Constraints    Filter: Bindings Constraints Obligations
Schedule		0..*	Schedule	A container for slots of time that may be available for booking appointments
Schedule.Slices for extension		0..*	Extension	Extension Slice: Unordered, Open by value:url Slicing Note: The rules on this element (including its children) apply to all the slices, but are not repeated in them
Schedule.Slices for extension.extension:specialty		0..*	Coding	Schedule Specialty URL: http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/schedule-specialty
Schedule.serviceType	S This element must be supported.	1..*	CodeableConcept	Specific service
Schedule.actor	S This element must be supported.	1..*	Reference(Practitioner | PractitionerRole | Healthcare Service | Location | Patient | RelatedPerson | Device)	Resource(s) that availability information is being provided for
Schedule.actor.reference	S This element must be supported.	1..1	string	Literal reference, Relative, internal or absolute URL
Schedule.actor.display	S This element must be supported.	0..1	string	Text alternative for the resource
Documentation for this format

Snapshot ViewView

Name	Flags	Card.	Type	Description & Constraints    Filter: Bindings Constraints Obligations
Schedule		0..*	Schedule	A container for slots of time that may be available for booking appointments
Schedule.id	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	id	Logical id of this artifact
Schedule.meta	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	Meta	Metadata about the resource
Schedule.implicitRules	?! This element is a modifier element. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	uri	A set of rules under which this content was created
Schedule.language		0..1	code	Language of the resource content Binding: CommonLanguages (preferred): A human language. Additional Bindings Purpose AllLanguages Max Binding
Schedule.text		0..1	Narrative	Text summary of the resource, for human interpretation This profile does not constrain the narrative in regard to content, language, or traceability to data elements
Schedule.contained		0..*	Resource	Contained, inline Resources
Schedule.Slices for extension		0..*	Extension	Extension Slice: Unordered, Open by value:url Slicing Note: The rules on this element (including its children) apply to all the slices, but are not repeated in them
Schedule.Slices for extension.extension:specialty		0..*	Coding	Schedule Specialty URL: http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/schedule-specialty
Schedule.modifierExtension	?! This element is a modifier element.	0..*	Extension	Extensions that cannot be ignored
Schedule.identifier	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..*	Identifier	External Ids for this item
Schedule.active	?! This element is a modifier element. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	boolean	Whether this schedule is in active use
Schedule.serviceCategory	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..*	CodeableConcept	High-level category Binding: ServiceCategory (example)
Schedule.serviceType	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	1..*	CodeableConcept	Specific service Binding: ServiceType (example)
Schedule.specialty	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..*	CodeableConcept	Type of specialty needed Binding: PracticeSettingCodeValueSet (preferred): Additional details about where the content was created (e.g. clinical specialty).
Schedule.actor	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	1..*	Reference(Practitioner | PractitionerRole | Healthcare Service | Location | Patient | RelatedPerson | Device)	Resource(s) that availability information is being provided for
Schedule.actor.id		0..1	string	Unique id for inter-element referencing
Schedule.actor.extension		0..*	Extension	Additional content defined by implementations Slice: Unordered, Open by value:url
Schedule.actor.reference	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries. C	1..1	string	Literal reference, Relative, internal or absolute URL
Schedule.actor.type	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	uri	Type the reference refers to (e.g. "Patient") Binding: ResourceType (extensible): Aa resource (or, for logical models, the URI of the logical model).
Schedule.actor.identifier	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	Identifier	Logical reference, when literal reference is not known
Schedule.actor.display	S This element must be supported. Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	string	Text alternative for the resource
Schedule.planningHorizon	Σ This element is included in summaries.	0..1	Period	Period of time covered by schedule
Schedule.comment		0..1	string	Comments on availability
Documentation for this format

Terminology Bindings

Path	Status	Usage	ValueSet	Version	Source
Schedule.language	Base	preferred	Common Languages	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.
Schedule.serviceCategory	Base	example	Service category	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.
Schedule.serviceType	Base	example	Service type	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.
Schedule.specialty	Base	preferred	Practice Setting Code Value Set	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.
Schedule.actor.type	Base	extensible	ResourceType	📍4.0.1	FHIR Std.

Constraints

Id	Grade	Path(s)	Description	Expression
dom-2	error	Schedule	If the resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT contain nested Resources	contained.contained.empty()
dom-3	error	Schedule	If the resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL be referred to from elsewhere in the resource or SHALL refer to the containing resource	contained.where((('#'+id in (%resource.descendants().reference | %resource.descendants().as(canonical) | %resource.descendants().as(uri) | %resource.descendants().as(url))) or descendants().where(reference = '#').exists() or descendants().where(as(canonical) = '#').exists() or descendants().where(as(canonical) = '#').exists()).not()).trace('unmatched', id).empty()
dom-4	error	Schedule	If a resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT have a meta.versionId or a meta.lastUpdated	contained.meta.versionId.empty() and contained.meta.lastUpdated.empty()
dom-5	error	Schedule	If a resource is contained in another resource, it SHALL NOT have a security label	contained.meta.security.empty()
dom-6	best practice	Schedule	A resource should have narrative for robust management	text.`div`.exists()
ele-1	error	**ALL** elements	All FHIR elements must have a @value or children	hasValue() or (children().count() > id.count())
ext-1	error	**ALL** extensions	Must have either extensions or value[x], not both	extension.exists() != value.exists()

This structure is derived from Schedule

Summary

Mandatory: 2 elements
Must-Support: 4 elements

Structures

This structure refers to these other structures:

• Practitioner (http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/smart-scheduling-practitioner)
• PractitionerRole (http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/smart-scheduling-practitionerRole)
• Healthcare Service (http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/smart-scheduling-healthcare-service)
• Location (http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/smart-scheduling-location)

Extensions

This structure refers to these extensions:

• http://hl7.org/fhir/uv/smart-scheduling-links/StructureDefinition/schedule-specialty

Maturity: 2