Spine Directory Service (SDS)

In order to use the GP Connect API, consumer systems need to integrate with the Spine SDS service to resolve the following two pieces of information which are needed to make an API call:

1. The Accredited System Identifier (ASID) of the organisation which is the target of the request. The ASID will be specified in the Ssp-To HTTP header in their request to the Spine Secure Proxy.
2. The FHIR Endpoint Server Root URL of the organisation which is the target of the request. This is used when constructing the URL of the request to the Spine Security Proxy.

Full details of how to integrate with SDS to carry out these two steps are outlined at Spine Core FHIR API Framework - Spine Endpoints. Note that in order to resolve the ASID, Step 1a described there is not required.

Consuming system viewpoint

Worked example of the endpoint lookup process

The two step process which a consumer undertakes to integrate with SDS is illustrated using a worked example at Spine Core FHIR API Framework - Endpoint Lookup Example - SSP.

Sample SDS client code

Sample client code is provided to ease the process of integration with SDS for GP Connect API consumers. This code provides helper classes which hide the details of the LDAP calls which are needed, and provide a simpler interface for endpoint lookup.

Provider system viewpoint

The provider system is responsible for populating SDS with the necessary information to enable reliable endpoint lookup by consuming systems.

To ensure that endpoint lookup is reliable, the guidelines defined at Spine Core FHIR API Framework - Endpoint lookup - provider system viewpoint MUST be followed for First of Type implementations.