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Interoperability Toolkit (ITK)

Interoperability Toolkit (ITK)

Owned by Jonathan Telfer (Unlicensed)
Last updated: 05-02-2025 by Victoria BusseyVersion comment
2 min read

 

ID

S48

Version

1.0.0

Type

Standard

Status

Effective

Effective Date

Contracting Vehicle(s)

 

Introduction

The Interoperability Toolkit (ITK) is a set of common specifications, frameworks and implementation guides that support interoperability. The ITK attempts to solve these problems by providing a number of specifications and technologies which are consistent and applicable across a wide range of domains and localities. It's not a piece of software or a downloadable product.

Individual interfaces within the Interoperability Standard may require suppliers to implement in accordance with, and show compliance to, either ITK2 or ITK3.

Requirements - ITK2

ID

Requirement

Level

ITK01

The ITK Standards fall into various areas including core messaging elements and supporting infrastructure, specialist additional modules, messaging transports such as TMS, DTS and its own ITK web Services Standard and a number of specific message standards. Systems can become compliant under a number of different configurations, specifically ITK Middleware, ITK Spine Mini Service Provider and ITK Application. 

In the context of GP systems, the system MUST offer an ITK Application interface as a minimum and may offer additional configurations if required.

MUST

ITK02

The system MUST support the following modules from the ITK v2 ‘Application’ configuration:

  • Core Messaging

  • Supporting Infrastructure – Common

  • Supporting Infrastructure - Application Specific

  • Additional Modules – Sequencing – Application

  • Additional Modules – IG – Application

  • Web Service Transport

MUST

 

ITK 2.2 status

Note: The current documentation for Interoperabilty Toolkit v2 on developer.nhs.uk and TRUD is version 2.2. However this version was never fully implemented and so the latest version for GP IT compliance (web service transport) is ITK version 2.1. 

Specification documentation attached: itk_arch_1.0.0_20140718000002.zip

Requirements - ITK3

ID

Requirement

Level

ITK03

ITK3 implements STU3 Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) messaging over Messaging Exchange for Social Care and Health (MESH) with extensions to provide an acknowledgement framework.

Go to ITK3 Messaging Distribution specification versions - NHS England Digital  for the directory of published ITK3 Messaging Distribution versions.

MUST

Compliance, Assurance & Testing

Compliance, assurance and testing resources that support implementers of this specification can be obtained by visiting: https://developer.nhs.uk/library/interoperability/itk/, in particular, 'Part 4: Testing and Accrediting an Implementation'.

For further advice and support beyond what is set out above, please contact itkconformance@nhs.net. 

Documentation

Dependencies

There may be dependencies for implementing this Standard, however, there are no Interoperability Standards within the Capabilities and Standards model that are dependents.

Roadmap

Items on the Roadmap which impact or relate to this Standard