Developer Access

API Access

Typical product integrations occur via an HL7 or FHIR interface. Dr. Know has tools and trained staff to assist with these types of integrations. Learn more here.

For trusted partnership scenarios or if your project requires a deeper integration, you can request direct access to the Dr. Know platform via our API and SDK.

Our team will review your request and you should receive a response within 48 hours.

Getting Started

Upon approval, you will be provided with an App ID, which is required when making API and SDK calls. Additionally, you will gain access to the Dr. Know API documentation portal.

Software Development Kit (SDK)

The Dr. Know API is extensive. As such, using our SDK can make development much easier and is strongly recommended. The SDK is made available to all approved developers.

There are only two files included with the SDK, which are required to exist alongside your executable when deployed:

1. DK.Models.dll   -- Main SDK (contains all clinical types)
2. Symmetry.dll    -- Generic API wrapper

SDK Initialization

You must initialize the SDK during your project's startup before any other code executes:

// specify your App ID and the appropriate threading mode for your project
Platform.Initialize(MyAppID, ThreadingMode.AsyncLocal);

At initialization time, you must specify the appropriate threading mode for your project, which instructs the SDK how it should manage its in-memory state. This setting is critical because the SDK heavily utilizes the async/await pattern and different project types behave differently with this pattern. For example, UI-based projects typically return from an await on the same thread, while non-UI-based projects typically return from an await on a different thread.

Use the table below to determine the appropriate threading mode for your project.

Connecting Users

Next, you must connect a valid Dr. Know user to establish a session. This is equivalent to a user logging in to the Dr. Know product. Internally, the SDK will cache a session token for this user's session. All subsequent SDK calls will be scoped to this user's session, until the session ends or another call to Connect() is made with a different username.

// connect an active subscribing user to the platform
await Platform.Connect("user@mydomain.com");

Once connected, you can use the various SDK types to perform the desired actions. All SDK types have convenient names and are self-documented via IntelliSense.

Error Handling

For scenarios when an item may or may not exist (e.g. finding a patient), a null reference is returned when the item does not exist. Null-checking is recommended for this scenario.

// attempt to find patient with MR# 123
// null-check to determine if patient was found
var patient = await Patient.Create(123);
if (patient == null) return;

// continue work
var fullName = patient.FullName;

For scenarios when an error occurs during a function call that is expected to succeed, a descriptive exception will be thrown. Inspecting the error code and message will provide further details. Normal try-catch blocks are recommended for this scenario.

try
{
    // call a function that is expected to succeed
    ...
}
catch (Exception error)
{
    System.Console.Writeline(error.Message);
}

Usage Patterns

The API and SDK support two common usage patterns:

Below are examples demonstrating each pattern's usage.

// CREATE
// create a NEW object using new(), populating its properties, and then calling 
// CreateNew(item) on the same type, passing in your instance.
// note: CreateNew() methods within the SDK represent CREATE operations.
// note: the ID property will be -1 prior to this call, but will be a valid new ID afterwards.
var patient = new Patient();
patient.FirstName = "Jane";
patient.LastName = "Doe";
patient.DOB = DateTime.Now;
patient = await Patient.CreateNew(patient);

// READ
// find an existing object by calling the appropriate Create() method on the type.
// note: Create() and CreateAll() methods within the SDK represent READ operations.
// use null-checking to see if the object was found.
var patient = await Patient.Create(123);
if (patient == null) return;

// UPDATE
// update an object's properties and then call Save() to save your changes.
patient.FirstName = "John";
await patient.Save();

// DELETE
// call Delete() on a valid object to delete it from the database.
await patient.Delete();

// FUNCTION CALLING
// call a supported static function on the desired type.
// note: most SDK types support static factory or other useful functions.
// fetch the first 10 patients who were born on May 16, 1975.
var patients = await Patient.CreateAll("05/16/1975", 10);